Darnay Holmes
Getty
The Falcons have signed cornerback Darnay Holmes to a one-year contract in free agency
The Atlanta Falcons have been active across the board to begin the offseason. After hiring Kevin Stefanski to be their new head coach, he quickly put together a new-look staff. Now, he’s helping implement his vision for the roster, which has led to the Falcons making some big moves in free agency.
While the majority of the big names in the league are already off the board, Atlanta is still working on reinforcing its roster with some new players. The latest guy to join the team is veteran cornerback Darnay Holmes, who had previously spent six seasons in the league with the Las Vegas Raiders and New York Giants.
Falcons Sign Darnay Holmes to 1-Year Contract
Jordan Schultz
Source: The #Falcons are signing former #Raiders CB Darnay Holmes to a 1-year deal.
Holmes has 4 career INTs with 21 passes defensed, and will add more depth to Atlanta’s secondary.
Holmes broke into the league as a fourth-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft with the Giants. And yet, to this point in his career, he’s struggled to carve out a major role for himself, as he’s often operated as a secondary cornerback due to his inconsistencies in coverage. With the Falcons, Holmes will clearly be hoping to earn some more snaps for himself moving forward.
The best season of Holmes’ career was his rookie year, which saw him rack up 30 tackles, 0.5 sacks, one interception, and five pass breakups in 12 games, five of which were starts. Since then, though, Holmes has logged just seven total starts, none of which came in 2025, as he racked up just 19 tackles in 13 games with the Raiders.
It wasn’t much of a surprise to see Las Vegas move on from Holmes, as he played sparingly for the team in the 2025 campaign. At just 27 years old, though, Holmes still has some upside, and he has experience being used in a variety of different roles across the secondary. As a result, Atlanta decided to bring him to town on a one-year contract.
“Source: The Falcons are signing former Raiders CB Darnay Holmes to a 1-year deal,” NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported in a post on X. “Holmes has 4 career INTs with 21 passes defensed, and will add more depth to Atlanta’s secondary.”
Darnay Holmes Hoping to Carve Out a Role for Himself with the Falcons
Darnay Holmes
GettyThe Falcons have signed cornerback Darnay Holmes to a one-year contract in free agency
Holmes likely won’t be starting at cornerback for the Falcons, as they have A.J. Terrell and Mike Hughes leading the way at this position for the time being. However, Holmes could emerge as a solid secondary cornerback within Atlanta’s secondary, as its coaching staff has developed a reputation for developing defensive backs in years past.
While the financials on this deal aren’t known, this isn’t going to be an expensive deal for Atlanta, meaning there’s virtually no risk involved. If Holmes pans out, that’d be a great win, but there’s not much that prevents them from moving on from him if he struggles. There’s no doubt that the Falcons are hoping things work out with Holmes, and it will be worth keeping tabs on him once training camp rolls around to see if he can carve out a role for himself on his new team.