Clay Matthews Jr.

Clay Matthews Jr.
refer to caption
Matthews during the 1984 NFL season
No. 57
Position: Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1956-03-15) March 15, 1956
Palo Alto, California
Height: 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight: 245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school: New Trier East (IL)
College: USC
NFL Draft: 1978 / Round: 1 / Pick: 12
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Tackles: 1,595
Sacks: 69.5
Interceptions: 16
Touchdowns: 1
Player stats at NFL.com

William Clay Matthews Jr. (born March 15, 1956) is a former American football linebacker who played for the Cleveland Browns and the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He was the first round draft pick of the Browns and played in 278 games over 19 NFL seasons, the 17th most appearances in league history (and most playing linebacker).[1] Matthews had 1,561 tackles in his career, the third most in NFL history.[2]

He is the father of Clay Matthews III, an All-Pro linebacker for the Green Bay Packers, and brother of Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bruce Matthews.

Professional career

Matthews was drafted by the Browns out of the University of Southern California with the 12th pick in the first round of the 1978 NFL Draft. Clay was a four-time Pro Bowler for Cleveland and was a cornerstone of the defense for well over a decade. In 1984, Clay recorded 12.0 sacks. He was present at the infamous Browns playoff losses known as Red Right 88, The Drive, and The Fumble, that kept some very good teams from appearing in a Super Bowl. One of his most memorable moments as a Brown was in a playoff game against the Bills on January 6, 1990. Jim Kelly and the high flying Bills offense came to Cleveland for a memorable shootout. With only seconds left in the 4th quarter and clinging to a 34-30 lead, Matthews intercepted a Kelly pass on the Brown's two yard line to seal a Cleveland victory. After the 1993 season, Clay became an Atlanta Falcon. In 1995 at the age of 39, Matthews started all 16 games for the Falcons. He was also the oldest player to record a sack at 40 years, 282 days. Matthews was one of the first players to negotiate a large contract going into the NFL.

Matthews was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week twice in his career with the Cleveland Browns (Week 12, 1984 and Week 9, 1991). Clay and his son, Clay Matthews III, are the only father-son tandem to be named defensive player of the week in the NFL.[3]

Life after pro football

Matthews resides in Agoura Hills, California. He serves as defensive coordinator at Oaks Christian High School, a coed private school in Westlake Village, California that his son Casey attended. He was inducted into the USC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005, along with his brother Bruce. After his retirement, Clay Matthews opened a Pontiac Dealership in the Cleveland suburb of Euclid in 1992; Matthews's dealership has since closed.

Clay and his brother Bruce competed with members of their family on the popular TV game show Family Feud, with Richard Dawson. The Matthews Family won the game, and Clay was one of the two family members to play the final round. One of five questions he was asked in the final round was "What is the ideal age for a U.S. President?". He answered "32". The constitutional requisite age to become President is 35. Clay ended up scoring 41 points total, and the Matthews family did not win the $10,000 grand prize.

In 2014, he was named Director of Football Operations at Carter (Tenn.) HS, where he once served as an assistant coach.[4]

Personal life

Clay Matthews, Jr. is married to Leslie. They have five children: Jennifer, Kyle, Brian, Clay and Casey.[5] Clay Matthews' brother Bruce Matthews, who also played at USC, and father Clay Matthews Sr. were also NFL players. Clay Matthews Jr. graduated from New Trier East High School in Winnetka, IL in 1974. Two of his sons joined the football team at USC, while another joined the football team at the University of Oregon: Kyle Matthews was a safety at USC (2000–03) and Clay Matthews III played linebacker and defensive end at USC (2004–2008). After graduation, Clay Matthews III was drafted by the Green Bay Packers. Casey Matthews played linebacker at the University of Oregon (2007–2011), and was selected in Round 4 of the 2011 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles.[6]

References

  1. ↑ NFL Career Games Leaders
  2. ↑ NFL Career Tackles Leaders
  3. ↑ LB Clay Matthews Named NFC Defensive Player Of The Week, Packers.com, September 22, 2010, Accessed December 9, 2012.
  4. ↑ http://www.footballscoop.com/high-school-scoop?start=36
  5. ↑ Branch, John (2011). "For Matthews Clan, N.F.L. Is All in the Family". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-11-27.
  6. ↑ Gary Klein, Trojans get ducks in a row up front, Los Angeles Times, October 27, 2007, Accessed July 3, 2008.

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