ATLANTA — As he reflected back on the last month of training camp and the preseason, head coach Raheem Morris said one of the most beautiful things he saw during that time was how A.J. Terrell worked.
Now, there's context to be shared about this statement. For weeks, contract negotiations between Terrell's team and the Falcons were well on their way. Those negotiations came to the end of the road this past Thursday, when the Falcons announced they had agreed to a four-year contract extension with Terrell, keeping the former first-round pick in his home city of Atlanta through the 2028 season.
It was a whopper of a contract, too. Valued at $81.5 million with $65.8 effectively fully guaranteed, the extension made Terrell one of the highest-paid cornerbacks in the history of the league, according to reports.
Despite it all, Morris said what made this preseason so special was the fact that you would never know simply by watching Terrell show up to work that all of this was coming to a head at the same time.
"I don't think anybody knew he was up (for an extension), and that was the most beautiful thing about the whole process," Morris explained. "We're talking behind the scenes, working on a contract. You have his agent talking to Terry (Fontenot, general manager). We got our money people talking with Terry, talking with his agent. All of this stuff is going on, and all A.J. did was just show up to work, play the corner position, lead the defensive backs, give us great energy in practice, tackle, knock down passes, get better, go to work and just play."
For Terrell, there was never a doubt in his mind that he would do anything but work amidst contract conversations.
"Football is my job. I never really paid attention to (the contract discussions). I let my agent do that. That's his job," Terrell said. "Me, just coming in, doing something I love with the team I love, for the city, it wasn't hard for me coming in. I was sleeping peaceful at night. I wasn't ever thinking about, 'What if?' ... As long as I am going out there and handling my business in practice, leading by example and making my presence felt, it'll all take care of itself."
And it did. With an extension in hand, Terrell will stay in his hometown for another four years, "and hopefully forever," he added.
"When a young man tells you that it's one of the best days of his life," Morris said of Terrell's signing day, "that's absolutely outstanding."
The hometown part of Terrell's story is an added layer to the beauty of the moment. He was a kid whose high school football career was played at Westlake High School; the field is just 16 miles from Mercedes-Benz Stadium, where he now plays on Sundays. He stayed in the south for college, too, taking his talents to Clemson before the Falcons' drafted him with the No. 16 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
In some ways, Terrell is still the same guy he was four years ago, and the Falcons continue to reap the rewards of their investment in him.
"When we drafted him back then you knew what kind of man he was. You knew the resolve he had," Morris said. "... You knew he had a fight to him, a certain toughness and he's done nothing but show us that since he's been here."
None of this, Terrell said, is lost on him. And he carries the hometown part of his story proudly, caring deeply for the roots that sprung him. In fact, in the next week, he'll return to Westlake High School. His jersey will be retired and he's being honored under the Friday night lights. Shortly after that, he'll be in attendance at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, cheering on his former team when Clemson faces Georgia to begin the college football season.
"Growing up here and being able to stay home for your NFL career, a lot of people don't get this opportunity, being able to play at home, make a statement and be loved by the fans. I don't take none of it for granted," he said. "When I go out there and play it's always for my family, the city and the team."
Now, the ink has dried. Terrell is locked in for four more years. So, what's the goal?
"Be the best version of myself for the next four years," he said.
And the team?
"We got everything we need to be successful," Terrell concluded. "It's on us to just go get the job done."
