James Pearce Jr. finished third in votes for the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year award on Thursday. Jeff Kravitz / FilmMagic via Getty Images
Atlanta Falcons rookie James Pearce Jr., a first-round pick in the 2025 draft, was arrested near Miami on Saturday on charges of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, aggravated stalking and fleeing police after allegedly leading police on a chase before crashing his vehicle, according to arrest records.
The 22-year-old pass rusher faces an additional charge of “resisting an officer without violence to his person,” a Florida charge levied when a suspect allegedly resists arrest but does not hurt any of the officers. Both the battery and stalking charges carry domestic violence designations.
Pearce was in San Francisco on Thursday to attend the pre-Super Bowl NFL Honors, where he finished third in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting after leading the Falcons and all rookies with 10.5 sacks this season.
The Falcons released a statement regarding Pearce’s arrest: “We are aware of an incident involving James Pearce Jr., in Miami. We are in the process of gathering more information and will not have any further comment on an open legal matter at this time.”
Pearce was previously arrested in December 2023 after Knoxville, Tenn., police reportedly stopped him for driving 63 mph in a 35 mph zone with expired tags. Officers arrested him for not following their instructions during the traffic stop. He was charged with speeding, driving on a suspended license, failure to present insurance, registration not properly displayed and improper window tinting. All charges were dropped a week later after Pearce paid his court fees and proved he had obtained a valid license.
Atlanta traded a package that included its 2026 first-round pick to the Los Angeles Rams last April for the No. 26 pick it used to take Pearce in the NFL Draft.
Leading up to the draft, one anonymous NFL scout told The Athletic’s Dane Brugler that “I want to be convinced (Pearce) loves this.” Multiple teams had crossed him off their draft boards due to off-field concerns, another league source told The Athletic. At the time, Pearce said he wasn’t sure what the off-field concerns were.
Pearce had 19.5 sacks in three seasons at Tennessee, including 17.5 over his final two seasons. The 6-foot-5, 245-pounder ran a 4.47-second 40-yard dash at the NFL combine.
Feb 8, 2026
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