The Atlanta Falcons had a stellar defensive performance against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 2, and they did for most of the game without star cornerback A.J. Terrell, who left the game early because of a hamstring injury. Earlier in the week, head coach Raheem Morris noted that Terrell would be week-to-week, and he recently ruled him out for their Week 3 matchup against the Carolina Panthers.
Though Terrell may be out this week, there is a silver lining to his future availability, according to ESPN's Marc Raimondi.
“Morris said he doesn’t consider Terrell to have a multi-week injury at this point. He’s still week to week,” Raimondi wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
The Falcons play the Washington Commanders in Week 4, and then they have a bye week, which will probably work in Terrell's favor when trying to get him back on the field. If the Falcons want to play it safe, they would sit him out until after the bye week and see where he is from there.
Terrell has played well through one and a half weeks this season, as he did a solid job in Week 1 against Mike Evans and Justin Jefferson in Week 2 before he was injured. For now, the Falcons will have to rely on their other cornerbacks, and Dee Alford was the player who stepped up in Terrell's place.
If the Falcons' defensive line continues to play like they did in Week 2, the secondary won't have to worry about much, and it will make their jobs easier. The Falcons sacked J.J. McCarthy five times, and he was intercepted twice. In Week 3, they'll go up against the Panthers, who will be down two of their starting offensive linemen. If the Falcons can cause havoc often and early to their offensive line, the absence of Terrell shouldn't feel that big.
