Even though it doesn’t seem like the Atlanta Falcons drafted Clemson cornerback and younger brother of Falcons star A.J. Terrell Jr., Avieon Terrell, to replace cornerback Mike Hughes it’s also not out of the realm of possibilities that Avieon could come in and seriously compete with Hughes for the other outside corner spot opposite A.J.
Earlier today The Morning Shift explained why they think Hughes must play well this season to stay on the field and stay on the Falcons roster moving forward.
“Mike Hughes is gonna have to play really good this year to be on this team moving forward or to just stay on the field, and I love Mike Hughes, I’m a huge fan, I think he’s a lot better than people give him credit for, but Mike Hughes is gonna have to show up and show out or these young guys are gonna have his job.” Beau Morgan said
The Falcons gave the former first round pick a three-year extension in 2025 after a strong 2024 season, but in the first year of that deal, Hughes underwhelmed as his yards per coverage snap allowed leapt from 1.0 to 1.5, and poor tackling in run support glared on their opponents' biggest plays. It's fair to expect a bounce-back season out of Hughes after he dealt with neck and ankle injuries, but it's also fair to question if he’s still the Falcons best CB2 option.
It’s also worth noting that Avieon isn’t a one-for-one replacement for Hughes, as he's a smaller corner who might be better suited for the slot, so it’s likely that if the Falcons 2025 fourth-round pick Billy Bowman Jr., who was strong in the slot before suffering a devastating torn Achilles during a November walk-through, isn't back to form, Terrell might instead man the nickel position which would keep Hughes in the starting lineup in 2026, but it wouldn’t be surprising if Terrell and Hughes are rotating first-team snaps in camp later this year.
