Clay Matthews says his playing days are over, indicates he would have liked finishing career in Green Bay
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Former Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews said that while he hadn't officially retired from the NFL, his playing days were definitively over. Matthews last played in the NFL in 2019 with the Los Angeles Rams, his lone season with any team other than the Packers.
With Green Bay, he made six Pro Bowls in 10 seasons, highlighted by a runner-up finish in the Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2010. That season, of course, the Packers won the Super Bowl, with a memorable Matthews forced fumble helping to solidify the win.
“I had a few other offers after for the 2020 season, but we had just moved to L.A., and we had just had our third child, and it was the middle of COVID, so there were a lot of unknowns," Matthews said. "Ultimately, there wasn’t a situation out there that made me want to relocate the family again. I wanted to focus on the next chapter, which is being a dad and being home a lot more.”
Matthews said he hopes to be invited back to Green Bay for a ceremonial official retirement as a member of the Packers. Green Bay made Matthews the 26th overall selection in the 2009 NFL Draft, a fruitful first round that also included the selection of B.J. Raji.
Matthews racked up 83½ sacks, becoming the franchise's official all-time sack leader.
Matthews said he'll always consider himself a Packers player and would have liked to finish his career there. Matthews became a free agent after the 2018 season and signed a deal with the Rams for two years.
JR Radcliffe can be reached at (262) 361-9141 or jradcliffe@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JRRadcliffe.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Clay Matthews done with football, wished to have finished with Packers
