[1] Donnelly committed to play college football at Wyoming over other schools such as Penn State and Syracuse.
[5] After going undrafted in the 1985 NFL draft, Donnelly signed a free agent contract with the New England Patriots in June.
[6] He played in two preseason games, averaging 44.5 yards per punt, but he was waived in favor of veteran Rich Camarillo.
[3][7] Donnelly was signed by the Atlanta Falcons on August 23, and the team soon released their veteran punter, Ralph Giacomarro.
[8] In 1987, Donnelly recorded a league-leading gross average of 44.0 yards per punt, finishing just ahead of Pro Bowl punter Jim Arnold.