Father’s Day in September for NFL Rookies

They will treat him to something special on Father’s Day. Maybe it will be a new set of golf clubs or dinner at his favorite steakhouse. But the real Father’s Day present from eight NFL rookies will be unwrapped in September on Kickoff Weekend. At that time, if all goes well, they will give dad a gift 173 sons have presented before — following in his footsteps as an NFL player.

Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers / Photo: Newscom

For one rookie, he will follow the NFL path of not only his father, but also his grandfather. Linebacker Clay Matthews, a first-round Draft pick of the Green Bay Packers this year out of Southern California, is the son of former Cleveland and Atlanta linebacker Clay Matthews, Jr. And grandson of Clay Matthews, Sr., a two-way lineman with San Francisco in the early 1950s.

When Clay takes the field for the first time on Kickoff Sunday September 13, the Matthewses will become only the second family with three generations of NFL players, joining the Pyne family (George, Jr., George III and Jim).

Clay’s uncle, Bruce, a Pro Football Hall of Fame lineman for the Oilers-Titans franchise, is now in his first season as an assistant offensive coach with the Houston Texans:

“Clay did his part, without a doubt, by working hard. The kid takes care of his body, eats right, and his reputation is that no one outworks him. That was a lot like his dad. His attitude was that you may have a head start on me or you may have a little lead on me, but through time and hard work, I’m going to find a way.”

For Clay, comparisons to his father, a four-time Pro Bowl linebacker for Cleveland, will be inevitable. But he’s up to the challenge of building his own NFL legacy:

“I never felt pressure from any of them to play football. It’s not something my dad ever pushed on us. He’s not one of those fathers who ever said, ‘You need to do this or do that.’ He’s always been very supportive of our decisions and steered us in the right directions. The pressure that I feel is more from myself to be successful. Maybe some of it stems from having such a successful family, but also just from the fact that I want to be the best – not just in football, but in everything in life.”

Clay may be the latest member of the Matthews clan to achieve his NFL dream, but he’s not likely to be the last. There are already two more Matthewses in the football pipeline. Clay’s brother, Casey, is a linebacker at Oregon and Bruce’s son, Kevin, is the starting center at Texas A&M.

Seven other rookies can join the NFL fathers-sons list this year: Buffalo safety Jairus Byrd, son of former San Diego cornerback Gill, Sr.; Dallas kicker David Buehler, son of former Oakland and Cleveland guard George; Cincinnati tight end Chase Coffman, son of former Green Bay and Kansas City tight end Paul; Seattle linebacker Aaron Curry, son of former Detroit and Baltimore Colts defensive back Reggie Pinkney; Kansas City defensive back Londen Fryar, son of former New England, Miami, Philadelphia and Washington wide receiver Irving; Chicago defensive tackle Jarron Gilbert, son of former New Orleans offensive tackle Daren; and Cleveland wide receiver Brian Robiskie, son of former Oakland and Miami running back Terry, who is currently the wide receivers coach for Atlanta.

There have been 173 father-son pairs and threesomes that have played in the NFL. The list includes such names as Dorsett (Tony and Anthony); Farr (Mel, Sr.; Mel, Jr.; and Mike); Hasselbeck (Don, Matt and Tim); Kramer (Jerry and Jordan); Klecko (Joe and Dan); Manning (Archie, Peyton and Eli); Metcalf (Terry and Eric); Shula (Don, Dave and Mike); and Winslow (Kellen, Sr. and Kellen, Jr.).