Falcons release Bryant
ATLANTA — The Atlanta Falcons released kicker Matt Bryant on Wednesday, ending the 10-year run of the team’s alltime leading scorer.
The decision to not renew the team’s option on the 43-year-old Bryant came despite another strong season in 2018, when he made 20 of 21 field-goal attempts and 33 of 35 extra-point tries.
Bryant’s only missed field goal was from 53 yards at Green Bay in early December. He said the miss was “probably like a 60-yarder on a normal field.”
Health concerns could have played a role in the Falcons’ decision, but Bryant — who missed three games with a hamstring injury in 2018 — insisted he is healthy.
“I’m not retiring and I feel fine and plan on feeling even better with some changes to my offseason program,” he wrote on Twitter.
Bryant also thanked Falcons fans for their support, adding: “I take great pride in my body of work on and off the field. I hope I have represented you well while I was here.”
Bryant recently told The Associated Press he wanted to extend his career.
“Yes, I am 43, and different things come along with that,” Bryant said. “As long as I can produce the way I think I can and I do it out there on the field, I’ll take the bumps and bruises. … Oh yeah, it’s not over. The journey goes on.”
Falcons owner Arthur Blank took note of Bryant’s team-record 1,122 points and his honor of being named the team’s Walter Payton Man of the Year in both 2013 and ’14. That award recognizes both on-field success and charity/volunteer work. In a team release, Blank said Bryant “will be remembered as one of the greatest Falcons of all time.”
Blank said Bryant “made countless memorable and game-winning kicks. His reliability and dependability were unmatched and he has been unflappable in pressure-filled moments.”
Bryant set a team record with 158 points in the 2016 season, when the Falcons made a run to the Super Bowl before losing in overtime to the New England Patriots.
Giorgio Tavecchio was signed when Bryant was injured this past season and was kept on the active roster for the remainder of the schedule, a move that could have been a hint of the plan to release Bryant. Tavecchio, 28, could be the starter in 2019 after making each of his five field-goal attempts, including a 56-yarder, in 2018.
The team’s release of Bryant came a day after it cut another veteran, cornerback Robert Alford. The release of Alford will clear $7.9 million in cap space for the 2019 season. The Bryant move clears another $2.8 million.
“There is no doubt he is one of the all-time great Falcons as he’s been an integral part of our success,” general manager Thomas Dimitroff said. “This was a difficult decision but one that was necessary for us to move forward into 2019. We have the utmost respect for the person and the player that Matt is, and we wish (him) and his family the best going forward.”