James Pearce Jr. did not report to the Atlanta Falcons’ voluntary offseason workouts, coach Kevin Stefanski said Wednesday.
“I will tell you guys, James Pearce is not here,” Stefanski said. “We’ve been in constant communication with his representation.”
Pearce was arrested near Miami on Feb. 7 after an incident involving his former girlfriend, WNBA player Rickea Jackson.
He faces three felony charges, including aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, fleeing and eluding police and resisting an officer with violence, in addition to a misdemeanor stalking charge.
The new Falcons coach emphasized that the training program is voluntary and that he wouldn’t be sharing additional details about which players reported.
“It’s a voluntary program, so that’s up to each individual player to make those decisions,” Stefanski said. “I would also add that we’ve had great discussions with his (Pearce’s) representation. I don’t want to get into the specifics of that.”
One of the players in attendance is running back Bijan Robinson, who earned AP first-team All-Pro honors after amassing 2,298 yards from scrimmage and 11 total touchdowns during the 2025-26 season.
The running back said he has not spoken with Pearce since his arrest.
“If he does come back, if he’s here in this building, I’m going to make sure that he’s all the way focused, all the way ready to go, make sure his mind is in the right place, so he can be at his best on and off the field,” Robinson said.
Pearce’s status with the Falcons has been in question since the arrest. The Falcons’ front office and coaching staff, which is largely full of new faces this season, has remained tight-lipped during the active investigation.
“Obviously, we’re aware of the most recent articles and things that have come out regarding James Pearce,” Falcons GM Ian Cunningham said in March. “Those are concerning, right, to say the least, but outside of that, I’ll just keep it just very similar to what we said at the combine. We’re not going to comment on an open legal matter here moving forward.”
Pearce led the Falcons with 10.5 sacks in 2025. He also had 26 total tackles, five pass deflections, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. The Falcons’ pass rush saw significant improvement with Pearce in the lineup in 2025, setting a team record with 57 sacks, 26 more than the year before.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
