Falcons Release Former Starting Center

As starting center Drew Dalman nears his return to full health, the Atlanta Falcons released one of their backups in Matt Hennessy,

The Atlanta Falcons released center Matt Hennessy on Thursday. / Pool Photo-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Falcons made a roster move with potentially significant implications Thursday.

Atlanta released backup center Matt Hennessy, it announced in a press release. Hennessy's departure signals positive news for the health of starting center Drew Dalman, who has been on injured reserve since suffering an ankle injury in Week 3 against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Dalman has practiced each of the past two weeks before being ruled out the day before kickoff. Falcons coach Raheem Morris said Wednesday he's optimistic about Dalman's availability for Sunday's game against the Denver Broncos.

"That requires a workload in practice, and it requires some things you got to do, you got to pass," Morris said Wednesday. "There's certain things you want to get through to get guys out there to be able to play. And we'll get a nice feel for that at least on Thursday."

Dalman participated fully in Thursday's practice, which predated Atlanta's release of Hennessy.

The Falcons initially signed Hennessy to their practice squad after Dalman's injury, and he was promoted to the active roster for each of the three games thereafter, serving as a backup to Dalman's fill-in, Ryan Neuzil. He did not play but was subsequently signed to the active roster Oct. 15.

Since being signed, Hennessy has played in the Falcons' past four games. He saw 12 snaps on offense during Atlanta's Week 7 loss to the Seattle Seahawks and has received special teams snaps the last three weeks.

Now, Hennessy is searching for a new home -- though it's not the first time he's been in such a position.

Hennessy, a third-round pick by the Falcons in 2020, was the team's starting center 2021 before losing the role to Dalman. He played in 41 games across three seasons with Atlanta, drawing two starts in 2020 and three more in 2022.

The 6-foot-3, 307-pound Hennessy suffered a knee injury during training camp in 2023 and was placed on season-ending injured reserve in the middle of August. He spent the 2024 offseason with the Philadelphia Eagles before being released at the end of the preseason.

The Falcons (6-4) and Broncos (5-5) will kick off at 4:05 p.m. Sunday on Empower Field at Mile High in Denver.