Stueber: Clay Matthews ahead of Rey and Cushing

[The_Riddler]

Clay Matthews, USC

The evolution of Clay Matthews as a player took a huge leap this offseason with a solid week of practice at the Senior Bowl and a tremendous workout at the Scouting Combine. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound Matthews impressed scouts with his athleticism and speed, which was highlighted by his 4.67 in the 40. Matthews also featured a 35.5-inch vertical, a 10-foot-1-inch broad jump and lifted 225 pounds 23 times. Matthews also did very well in positional drills and is a special team’s ace in the making. With his pedigree and all of the positive feedback he’s receiving, don’t be surprised to see Matthews drafted before Maualuga and Cushing; somewhere between No. 15 – 23.

I'm hoping he's there at 23, I'm thinking this is BB's guy............

 

[patchick]

Here's the link:

Scout.com: NFL Combine: Risers, Fallers and Rankings

 

[The_Riddler]

Here's the link:

Scout.com: NFL Combine: Risers, Fallers and Rankings

Thanks...............I should have included it.

 

[VJCPatriot]

I like Clay. I like him more than most posters on this board. And I agree that he is above Cushing right now. But Rey is still a questionmark and could rebound with a good Pro Day. I still like Barwin more than Clay as a passrush prospect though. Right now I'm wondering if Clay will be a 1st round pick. If he does he will have earned it. Good on him. If he doesn't and the Pats haven't taken a linebacker in round 1, I'd take a look at him in round 2 for sure.

 

[mayoclinic]

I like Clay. I like him more than most posters on this board. And I agree that he is above Cushing right now. But Rey is still a questionmark and could rebound with a good Pro Day. I still like Barwin more than Clay as a passrush prospect though. Right now I'm wondering if Clay will be a 1st round pick. If he does he will have earned it. Good on him. If he doesn't and the Pats haven't taken a linebacker in round 1, I'd take a look at him in round 2 for sure.

Agree with most of this. I like Matthews too, but no matter how you slice it he is well behind Barwin on my board. If Barwin was gone by #47 and Matthews was still around I would consider it.

 

[mayoclinic]

Here's the link:

Scout.com: NFL Combine: Risers, Fallers and Rankings

Very interesting. No mention of Louis Delmas or Sean Smith - hope they keep a relatively low profile between now and the draft.

 

[VJCPatriot]

I think that Delmas or Sean Smith have a better chance of lasting to round 2 than Barwin. I could be wrong but that's why I think taking Barwin in round 1 makes sense. He has a combination of athletic ability and versatility that is hard to pass up.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Any relation to the LB Clay Matthews that played for the Browns in the 80s???

 

[VJCPatriot]

Any relation to the LB Clay Matthews that played for the Browns in the 80s???

Direct relation. This is Clay Matthews Jr. The kid has good bloodlines which is what got me interested in the first place. He actually outplayed the other more hyped LBers at USC his senior season according to some scouts. And Clay's solid showing at the combine has pushed him ahead of Cushing imo.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Direct relation. This is Clay Matthews Jr. The kid has good bloodlines which is what got me interested in the first place. He actually outplayed the other more hyped LBers at USC his senior season according to some scouts. And Clay's solid showing at the combine is pushed him ahead of Cushing imo.

I guess that means his dad was on the team when BB was coach there?

If this is the case then I see no way BB passes over him,especially how good of a LB Matthews was back then

 

[patchick]

Direct relation. This is Clay Matthews Jr.

Actually, he's Clay III -- dad & grandpa both played in the NFL.

 

[VJCPatriot]

Actually, he's Clay III -- dad & grandpa both played in the NFL.

Wow his grandpappy too? Man that's one hell of a talented family.

 

[patchick]

I still like Barwin more than Clay as a passrush prospect though.

Clay's a tough one for me, because some of the same qualities that make me like him also make me question how good he can ultimately be. Like so:

The guy grew up steeped in football, with his dad, uncle and grandpa all NFL players. All he ever wanted was to play for the Trojans like all the men in his family. But he wasn't nearly talented enough. Based on his attitude and his family name, Pete Carroll grudgingly agreed to let him walk on. He worked like crazy, built up his body in USC's legendary training program, and eventually managed to earn a scholarship playing special teams. Then partway through his senior year, he finally cracked the starting lineup and recorded 4.5 sacks surrounded by NFL-caliber talent.

So, one way to look at it is you have a kid with a great family legacy who lives and breathes football and is willing to work his butt off to be the best player he can be. Or, you could say here's a kid who was given every advantage in the world and who after years of hard work...managed to be half as productive and athletic as Barwin did in the first year ever playing defense.

 

[cstjohn17]

All three look like very good players, Cushing has a lot of versatility, Matthews looks to have a lot of natural pass rush ability and Megs is a pure ILB.

If Maualuga falls to 23 then he is still my pick. USC is on tv a lot, every game I saw he was the dominant defender (although Taylor Mays looks like the real deal as well).

Front Seven - as good as any in football
Vrabel Warren Wilfork Seymour Thomas
Maualuga Mayo

ILBs - Maualuga, Mayo, Bruschi, Guyton
OLBs - Vrabel, Thomas, Woods, Crable
-plus one of Redd, Robertson, Ruud, or another draft pick
- this would be the deepest LB core since 2004

Draft a Safety of your choice in round 2 and things start to take shape pretty nicely.

 

[The_Riddler]

Any relation to the LB Clay Matthews that played for the Browns in the 80s???

Just a slight resemblance: The locks alone should put him in the top 20...............

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

If Maualuga falls to 23 then he is still my pick. USC is on tv a lot, every game I saw he was the dominant defender...

Every broadcast with Brett Favre in the game featured a love fest on par with what Maualuga got from the broadcast booth, I'll pass on an over-hyped MLB who needs an All-Star supporting cast to keep him productive.

 

[cstjohn17]

Every broadcast with Brett Favre in the game featured a love fest on par with what Maualuga got from the broadcast booth, I'll pass on an over-hyped MLB who needs an All-Star supporting cast to keep him productive.

I am sure we will all miss the 20 or 30 times a game that they announce "Thats Brett Favre, that just what he is" or "What a tough guy, he is just a football player"

I see Maualuga as an overhyped MLB who needs an All-Star supporting cast but will still be an impact player in the NFL... time will tell.

 

[BPF]

Clay's a tough one for me, because some of the same qualities that make me like him also make me question how good he can ultimately be. Like so:

The guy grew up steeped in football, with his dad, uncle and grandpa all NFL players. All he ever wanted was to play for the Trojans like all the men in his family. But he wasn't nearly talented enough. Based on his attitude and his family name, Pete Carroll grudgingly agreed to let him walk on. He worked like crazy, built up his body in USC's legendary training program, and eventually managed to earn a scholarship playing special teams. Then partway through his senior year, he finally cracked the starting lineup and recorded 4.5 sacks surrounded by NFL-caliber talent.

So, one way to look at it is you have a kid with a great family legacy who lives and breathes football and is willing to work his butt off to be the best player he can be. Or, you could say here's a kid who was given every advantage in the world and who after years of hard work...managed to be half as productive and athletic as Barwin did in the first year ever playing defense.

I think the best way to decide which player you like best would be to project that players particular skills, talent and athletic ability along with his intelligence forward and see if you can envision that particular player fitting in to the Pats system. I'm sure the Pats will work both players out and also make sure they can grasp the scheme mentally before stacking their board. At this point I'd have to say I'm torn, initially I was favoring Matthews but now I'm leaning towards Barwin. Good thing the draft is in April.

I see what you're saying on Matthews but I wouldn't hold his family history against him. When he showed up at USC he was a frail, scrawny kid weighing around 180 lbs. The fact that he worked hard and turned himself into a 6-3, 240 LB with 4.58 speed is a testament to both his work ethic and his bloodlines. I'm sure if he was still small and frail he wouldn't be in his current position and he wouldn't have seen the field even with the family name. Sometimes in these situations coaches will hold that name against a player and not give him as quick a shot as he would with others not wanting to look as though he's giving him an unfair advantage. That family has not only produced good players but excellent ones. I wouldn't bet against Clay Jr III.

Here's a related story: http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/...lder_Matthews_thinks_Belichick_right_for_son/

 

[Ochmed Jones]

Clay's a tough one for me, because some of the same qualities that make me like him also make me question how good he can ultimately be. Like so:

The guy grew up steeped in football, with his dad, uncle and grandpa all NFL players. All he ever wanted was to play for the Trojans like all the men in his family. But he wasn't nearly talented enough. Based on his attitude and his family name, Pete Carroll grudgingly agreed to let him walk on. He worked like crazy, built up his body in USC's legendary training program, and eventually managed to earn a scholarship playing special teams. Then partway through his senior year, he finally cracked the starting lineup and recorded 4.5 sacks surrounded by NFL-caliber talent.

So, one way to look at it is you have a kid with a great family legacy who lives and breathes football and is willing to work his butt off to be the best player he can be. Or, you could say here's a kid who was given every advantage in the world and who after years of hard work...managed to be half as productive and athletic as Barwin did in the first year ever playing defense.

This is a real good assessment of Mathews.

Between him and Barwin you can ying-yang yourself to death evaluating strengths and weaknesses.

At the end of the day both are long on tools, but short on experience. So some major projecting is required and I can't see BB using a first rounder on a projection. However he does take projections in the second round so if either or both make it to round two, I could see BB jumping, especially if we get the KC 2nd rounder.

However if he did take one of these two players, I would love if after the draft, BB could give us an honest and complete review of his evaluation process of whichever of these two players he chooses. But like everything else, there is no way BB comes clean. Which is too bad for us, the fans.

 

[dryheat44]

Wow his grandpappy too? Man that's one hell of a talented family.

And his uncle Bruce played in the NFL for something like 18 years as offensive tackle.