Cleveland Browns: Is Clay Matthews a Hall of Famer?

Aug 9, 2015; Canton, OH, USA; General view of the Pro Football Hall of Fame logo. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Clay Matthews, who played linebacker for the Cleveland Browns for 16 years, is one of 108 modern-era nominees for enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2016.

According to the hall’s website, the nominees will first be cut to 25 semifinalists in November and then to 15 finalists in January. Those 15 finalists, along with senior candidates Ken Stabler and Dick Stanfel, and contributor candidate Edward DeBartolo Jr., will be presented to the full 46-member selection committee during its annual selection meeting the day before Super Bowl 50.

While there is no set number for how many enshrinees are selected, the hall requires that between four and eight new members will be selected.

Matthews, a semifinalist in 2012, was one of two first-round selections made by the Browns in the 1978 NFL Draft, along with Hall-of-Famer Ozzie Newsome, making that arguably the best first round in franchise history.

During his 16 seasons with the Browns, Matthews played in four Pro Bowls, was a three-time NFL All-Pro, and made 248 starts (second in franchise history to Lou Groza) in a career that started with Brian Sipe and the Kardiac Kids, continued through the glory years of the Bernie Kosar playoff years, and closed out during the Bill Belichick era.

Twenty-two years after playing his last game with the Browns, Matthews still holds the franchise record for career sacks with 62, career tackles with 1,430 and forced fumbles with 24.

View image | gettyimages.com

Matthews also had a role in some of the most memorable plays in Browns’ history, from his lone interception return for a touchdown against Pittsburgh in 1987, to his fumble recovers and subsequent lateral against Houston in 1989, to intercepting Buffalo’s Jim Kelly to clinch a playoff game in 1990.

He played his final three seasons with Atlanta and finished his career with most games played as a linebacker in NFL history.

There are currently 26 linebackers in the Hall of Fame – so should Matthews be No. 27?

When you look over the list of players, the names that stand out in making a case for Matthews are Harry Carson, Ted Hendricks and Chris Hanburger, all players that Pro Football Reference lists as having had similar careers to Matthews.

If they are in, shouldn’t Matthews also be in? Well, it’s a bit trickier than that.

Hendricks made eight Pro Bowls and was a four-time First Team All-Pro selection during 15 years with Baltimore, Green Bay and Oakland. He also appeared in seven AFC Championship games and four Super Bowls.

Hanburger was a First Team All-NFL selection four times between 1972 and 1976, and also made nine Pro Bowls in 14 seasons, all with the Redskins.

Finally, there is Carson, who may actually be the one comparable player that can boost Matthews’ chances.

While Carson made nine Pro Bowls during his 13-year career with the Giants and was a First Team All-Pro selection twice, we can’t help but think his Hall of Fame candidacy was helped by the fact that he played in New York and with fellow Hall-of-Famer Lawrence Taylor taking up the attention of opposing offenses.

More from Dawg Pound Daily

That is not to diminish what Carson did, but if he is in the Hall of Fame, then Matthews has a solid case for consideration from the selection committee.

The biggest thing working against Matthews is that he played the majority of his career in Cleveland. The Browns made just two playoff appearances in his first seven years, and while they appeared in three AFC Championship Games in the late 1980s, not making the Super Bowl robbed Matthews of the kind of exposure that would have helped his candidacy for the hall.

Matthews was a very good player for a very long time, but ultimately he seems destined for the “hall of very good players” rather than the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Next: Browns vs Titans: 5 best games of all-time

Home/Browns News