Atlanta Falcons: Grading each day of the 2020 NFL Draft
Day 1
Going into the first round of action in the 2020 NFL Draft, it was to be seen if the Atlanta Falcons would ultimately make a move up in the draft as they were rumored to be interested in, or if they would stand pat with their original opening-round pick in the middle of the draft order.
After making attempts to move up in the first round on Thursday, Atlanta ended up staying at No. 16 overall as originally planned and addressed a big need on defense with that pick.
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With the 16th overall selection, the Falcons filled a big hole in the back-end of the defense with a somewhat surprising pick of cornerback A.J. Terrell out of Clemson.
One of the things Atlanta needed to address early in this draft was shoring up some holes on the defensive side of the ball, an area the Falcons struggled in especially during the first half of the 2019 campaign.
With the selection of Terrell, filling those needs on defense to counter the Falcons’ high-powered offense is underway. The selection of Terrell fills a need for Atlanta but it is a pick that has been viewed as a bit of reach since Thursday night’s first round took place, with multiple mock drafts having the cornerback going later on in the first round or even early portion of the second round.
Terrell will provide the Falcons with a young cornerback within a position that was of great need for the organization, but some could argue that he would have been available later on for Atlanta if it would have been willing to wait.
The prospect is a lengthy defensive back that has the ability to hold opposing wide receivers in check as a lockdown corner. He is also a speedy option out of the back end of the defense and provides the Falcons with another option when it comes to being able to blitz the quarterback.
Given the fact the Falcons made a reach to grab a cornerback they maybe could have tried to even trade back and select later on in the first round, they receive a grade of C for this first-round selection and night in totality.