Clay Matthews III
William Clay Matthews III (born May 14, 1986) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). The six-time Pro Bowl selection and two-time All-Pro played primarily with the Green Bay Packers. He is the all-time official sack leader for the Green Bay Packers.
Matthews with the Packers in 2012 | |||||||||||||
| No. 52 | |||||||||||||
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| Position: | Linebacker | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born: | May 14, 1986 Los Angeles, California, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 255 lb (116 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school: | Agoura (Agoura Hills, California) | ||||||||||||
| College: | USC (2004–2008) | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2009 / Round: 1 / Pick: 26 | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
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| Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |||||||||||||
After attending Agoura High School in Agoura Hills, California, Matthews was a walk-on student athlete at the University of Southern California for the USC Trojans football team under head coach Pete Carroll. At USC, Matthews was a standout special-teams player, winning three consecutive Special Teams Player of the Year awards from 2006 to 2008. He also played reserve outside linebacker during those years before moving into a starting role his senior season. During his college career, he was a part of three Pac-10 Championship teams.
Matthews was considered a top prospect for the 2009 NFL Draft. He was ultimately selected by the Green Bay Packers in the first round of the draft (26th overall) after the team traded up to make the selection. In his rookie year, Matthews recorded 10 sacks while playing outside linebacker. He topped that total in 2010 with 13.5 sacks, helping the Packers to their Super Bowl XLV victory. Matthews continued his role as a leading pass rusher, recording at least six sacks in the first nine seasons he played. He also has showed his athleticism and abilities by playing both inside and outside linebacker during the 2014 and 2015 seasons.
A member of the Matthews family of football players, he is the brother of former NFL linebacker Casey Matthews, the son of former NFL linebacker Clay Matthews Jr., and the nephew of Pro Football Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bruce Matthews.