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CLEMATTHEWS52

Clay Matthews

Retired

Atlanta Falcons · LB

Clay Matthews recorded 278 indexed regular-season NFL appearances across 19 rostered seasons with Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns.

▶Best highlights

0.0

tackles/gm

11

playoff games

19

indexed seasons

278

career games

Five defining games

Start here

A provisional five-game introduction to Clay Matthews's most significant indexed performances.

Regular Season
1984
CLEVELANDBROWNS
ATLANTAFALCONS
NOV 18, 1984

Cleveland Browns vs Atlanta Falcons

Regular Season · Nov 18, 1984

0 tackles · 3.5 sacks · 0 INT

Regular Season
1996
CAROLINAPANTHERS
ATLANTAFALCONS
NOV 3, 1996

Carolina Panthers vs Atlanta Falcons

Regular Season · Nov 3, 1996

0 tackles · 3 sacks · 0 INT

Divisional Round
1986
NEW YORKJETS
CLEVELANDBROWNS
JAN 3, 1987

New York Jets vs Cleveland Browns

Divisional Round · Jan 3, 1987

0 tackles · 1 sacks · 0 INT

Wild Card
1982
CLEVELANDBROWNS
OAKLANDRAIDERS
JAN 8, 1983

Cleveland Browns vs Oakland Raiders

Wild Card · Jan 8, 1983

0 tackles · 1 sacks · 0 INT

Regular Season
1993
CLEVELANDBROWNS
CINCINNATIBENGALS
OCT 17, 1993

Cleveland Browns vs Cincinnati Bengals

Regular Season · Oct 17, 1993

0 tackles · 2 sacks · 0 INT

Single-game peaks

Career highs

Position-relevant single-game records from Clay Matthews's indexed NFL box scores.

Career high: 3.5 sacks

Regular Season
1984
CLEVELANDBROWNS
ATLANTAFALCONS
NOV 18, 1984

Cleveland Browns vs Atlanta Falcons

Regular Season · Nov 18, 1984

0 tackles · 3.5 sacks · 0 INT

Career high: 2 interceptions

Regular Season
1987
PITTSBURGHSTEELERS
CLEVELANDBROWNS
SEP 20, 1987

Pittsburgh Steelers vs Cleveland Browns

Regular Season · Sep 20, 1987

0 tackles · 0 sacks · 2 INT

Career chapters

Franchise eras

Follow the team eras that shaped Clay Matthews's career, in chronological order.

Earliest → latest

Franchise era

1966–1984

01
CLEMATTHEWS52Clay Matthews
CLESIPE—Brian Sipe
CLENEWSOME—Ozzie Newsome

Sipe's late-game offense revives Cleveland

Cleveland Browns · From contention to the Kardiac Kids

The Browns remained competitive after Brown and later found a new identity in Sipe's dramatic 1980 MVP season.

Read the era story →

Franchise era

1985–1995

02
CLEMATTHEWS52Clay Matthews
CLEKOSAR19Bernie Kosar
CLEMATTHEWS—Clay Matthews Jr.

Three AFC title games, three painful endings

Cleveland Browns · Kosar and the Denver heartbreaks

A homegrown contender reached three conference championship games in four seasons before The Drive and The Fumble became permanent Cleveland memories.

Read the era story →

Franchise era

1989–1996

03
ATLMATTHEWS57Clay Matthews
ATLSANDERS21Deion Sanders
ATLRISON89Andre Rison

Deion Sanders makes Atlanta an event

Atlanta Falcons · Prime Time changes the temperature

Sanders brought speed and swagger to a franchise still searching for consistency, setting the tone for a bolder Atlanta football identity.

Read the era story →

Career accomplishments

19 NFL seasons278 career games70 career sacksCollege: USC11 playoff appearancesFirst appearance: Sep 10, 1978Most recent: Dec 22, 1996

Official awards via ESPN · Pro Bowl and All-Pro counts via NFLverse with selection years cross-checked against Wikipedia · league leads verified from indexed regular-season stats

Team history