Packers' Matthews has game to live up to name

Green Bay linebacker Clay Matthews is the fourth NFL player from his family but is hoping to be the first of the quartet to win an NFL championship. Credit: Getty Images
LOS COLINAS, Texas - Of course it took a Clay Matthews with a Roman numeral after his name to make it to the Super Bowl. But III is here at XLV.
The third-generation NFLer, whose lineage is so entrenched in the sport that his family tree is more like a depth chart, is looking to win a ring not only for himself and the Packers, but also for his legacy.
"Hopefully, we can pull one off for the whole Matthews family," the linebacker said Monday, shortly after the Packers arrived to start preparing for Sunday's game. "It'd be real exciting for us to bring one home."
His father, Clay Jr., spent 19 years playing linebacker in the NFL, mostly with the Browns, but never reached a Super Bowl. His grandfather, the original Clay Matthews, played four seasons for the 49ers in the 1950s.
There's also uncle Bruce, the Hall of Fame offensive lineman with the Oilers and Titans. He played 19 years, too, and got to a Super Bowl. Eleven years ago, his Titans lost to the Rams.
With all that tradition, Clay Matthews III must have been destined for the NFL. But he actually was a walk-on at USC who left as a first-round draft pick. Monday, he fell only two votes shy of being NFL Defensive Player of the Year. The Steelers' Troy Polamalu earned the title with 17 votes.
"Growing up in the family, surrounded with so much football knowledge and being around it for so long, it really helped me transition to where I am today and the little bit of success I've had in my two years [in the NFL]," Matthews said.
"I didn't play a whole lot in high school, had zero scholarship opportunities, had to walk on, go through that and scratch and claw for everything. Despite being a first-round pick and being given every opportunity to succeed, I still feel like I have something to prove."
Though Matthews was a late bloomer, his 2010 season sprouted right away. He had three sacks in each of the Packers' first two games and finished with 13.5 and 60 tackles. He became one of defensive coordinator Dom Capers' favorite toys.
"He does a little bit of everything," Packers linebacker A.J. Hawk said. "You couple that with what coach Capers can do and set him up in different positions, have him rushing off the edge, you never really know where he's going to come from."
The Steelers certainly are aware of Matthews. Coach Mike Tomlin called him a "unique and dynamic player." Steelers tackle Flozell Adams, who rarely says anything nice about anybody, called him a "great player. You have to stay on your toes against that guy."
Matthews' father will be at the game Sunday, and it won't be a changeup for the former Brown to be rooting against the Steelers. Clay III said he was too young to appreciate the Cleveland-Pittsburgh rivalry when his father was playing in it, so facing the Steelers has no bearing on him.
"I hope to influence games in any way I can," he said. " . . . If they're going to try and sit back there and pass, I expect to get to the quarterback."
For a guy whose career has exceeded expectations, Clay Matthews and the two Clay Matthewses before him have a lot of them left for Sunday.
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