Christopher Douglas Matthews (born October 6, 1989) is an American former professional wide receiver. Matthews was undrafted out of college in 2011, and signed with the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

. He then played for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers for two seasons, winning the CFL's Most Outstanding Rookie Award in his first season. Matthews then signed with the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

where he recovered a critical

onside kick In gridiron football, an onside kick is a kickoff deliberately kicked short in an attempt by the kicking team to regain possession of the ball. This is in contrast with a typical kickoff, in which the kicking team intends to give the ball to the o ...

during the 2014 NFC Championship Game, and caught four passes for 109 yards and a touchdown in Super Bowl XLIX. He has also been a member of the

Iowa Barnstormers The Iowa Barnstormers are a professional indoor American football, indoor football team based in Des Moines, Iowa. They are currently members of the Indoor Football League (IFL). They play their home games at Wells Fargo Arena (Des Moines, Iowa) ...

of the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

(AFL). Matthews played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for Los Angeles Harbor College and the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentu ...

Early years and college

Matthews attended Susan Miller Dorsey High School in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, and played

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

for the school's team as a

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

and as a

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

. He intended to enroll at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

(UCLA) to play

for the

UCLA Bruins football The UCLA Bruins football program represents the University of California, Los Angeles, in college football as members of the Pac-12 Conference at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level. The Bruins play their home games at the ...

team, but was academically ineligible to play for a school in Division I of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

. He enrolled at Los Angeles Harbor College (LAHC), a

junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...

, to play football. At LAHC, Matthews became a wide receiver. During his sophomore season, Matthews caught 80 passes for 1,235 yards and 11 touchdowns in nine games. In 2009, Matthews transferred to the

to play for the

Kentucky Wildcats football The Kentucky Wildcats football program represents the University of Kentucky in the sport of American football. The Wildcats compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern D ...

team for his

junior year A junior is person in the third year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. In United States high schools, a junio ...

, in 2009. That year, he caught 32 passes for 354 yards with three touchdowns. For the 2010 Wildcats team, Matthews caught 61 passes for 925 yards with nine

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

College statistics

Professional career

Cleveland Browns and Iowa Barnstormers

Matthews went undrafted in the

2011 NFL Draft The 2011 NFL Draft was the 76th installment of the annual NFL Draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players. Like the 2010 draft, the 2011 draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York C ...

. The

signed Matthews as an undrafted

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

. During the final cuts at the end of training camp, he was released. Matthews played for the

of the

(AFL) in . He caught 36 passes for a total of 472 yards and nine touchdowns for the Barnstormers.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Matthews signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

(CFL) for the 2012 season. In his rookie year, he played in all 18 games of the regular season, and compiled 1,192 yards on 81 receptions with seven touchdowns en route to winning the 2012 CFL's Most Outstanding Rookie Award. During the 2013 season, Matthews' performance was hampered by a serious turf toe injury which caused him to miss all but four games of the regular season. He finished the season with only 14 catches for 138 yards and one touchdown. Matthews was released by the Blue Bombers. In the offseason, he worked at

Foot Locker Foot Locker Retail, Inc. is an Americans, American sportswear and footwear retailer, with its headquarters in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, and operating in 28 countries. Although established in 1974, and founded as a separate company in ...

and as a

security guard A security guard (also known as a security inspector, security officer, or protective agent) is a person employed by a government or private party to protect the employing party's assets (property, people, equipment, money, etc.) from a variety ...

Seattle Seahawks

While Matthews was working as a security guard, he received a phone call from a member of the

inviting him to try out for them that night. On February 18, 2014, Matthews signed with the Seahawks on a 2014 reserve/future contract. After four preseason games in which he caught four passes for 53 yards, Seattle released him on August 30, 2014. On August 31, 2014, it was announced that he had been signed to their

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

. He was signed to the Seahawks' 53-man roster on December 6, 2014. He played in three regular season games for the Seahawks in the 2014 season, and did not catch a pass. He recorded a tackle on a

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

play. In the 2014 NFC Championship Game versus the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

, Matthews recovered a critical

, which gave the Seahawks an opportunity to score and eventually win the game in overtime. In Super Bowl XLIX against the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

, Matthews had his first NFL catch, a 44-yard pass from

Russell Wilson Russell Carrington Wilson (born November 29, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played his first 10 seasons for the Seattle Seahawks. Wilson is widely regarded ...

which led to a Seahawks touchdown. He then caught an 11-yard pass for a touchdown at the end of the first half, tying the game 14–14. Matthews finished the game with four catches for 109 yards, tied with the Patriots' Julian Edelman as the game's leading receiver, but the Patriots defeated the Seahawks 28–24. For his performance he received consideration for Super Bowl MVP honors which was ultimately won by Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. During the game, the value of Matthews's rookie card reportedly soared by 3,500%. On November 17, 2015, the Seahawks released Matthews. Seattle had given him the option of returning to the

, but Matthews declined saying “I felt like I was too far ahead for that. I didn’t want to go back to that life.”

Baltimore Ravens

After being released by the Seahawks, Matthews was signed to the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

practice squad on November 23, 2015. He was promoted to the active roster on December 12, 2015. He scored his first career NFL regular season touchdown on December 27, 2015 against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

. On April 7, 2016, Matthews signed his exclusive rights free agent tender to remain with the Ravens. On September 3, 2016, he was placed on injured reserve. On September 2, 2017, Matthews was released by the Ravens, but was re-signed two days later. He was released again on November 3, 2017. According to ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

'', Matthews was a "heartwarming story, a guy who’d gone from hiding in plain sight to the cusp of Super Bowl history to the unemployment line, in less than a calendar year".

Calgary Stampeders

On October 2, 2018 Matthews returned to the

CFL The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

when he signed with the Calgary Stampeders. With the Calgary Stampeders winning the Grey Cup Matthews became a crucial pickup making 12 receptions for 252 yards in four remaining regular season games. In two playoff games Matthews contributed 7 catches for 98 yards en route to winning the Championship game.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers (second stint)

On May 10, 2019, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers announced they had signed Matthews to a three-year contract. He played in six games for the team, recording 12 receptions for 180 yards and a touchdown before being released on August 28, 2019.

Montreal Alouettes

Two days after being released by Winnipeg, Matthews signed with the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the Canadian F ...

. Matthews played in 5 games in the second half of the season, and helped Montreal secure its first playoff berth since 2015, by catching 9 passes for 139 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Personal life

Matthews's father, Darell, is from

Holly Springs, Mississippi Holly Springs is a city in, and the county seat of, Marshall County, Mississippi, United States, near the southern border of Tennessee. Near the Mississippi Delta, the area was developed by European Americans for cotton plantations and was dep ...

. He played

at Lane College, and is a member of the

Los Angeles Police Department The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), officially known as the City of Los Angeles Police Department, is the municipal police department of Los Angeles, California. With 9,974 police officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the third-large ...

. Like his son, Darell also wore uniform number 13. He has a younger sister, Jada, who attends the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

and plays

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the Utah Utes women's basketball team. Matthews is a cousin of Reggie White.

References

External links

Seattle Seahawks profile

CFL profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Matthews, Chris 1989 births Living people American football wide receivers Canadian football wide receivers Cleveland Browns players Iowa Barnstormers players Kentucky Wildcats football players Los Angeles Harbor Seahawks football players Seattle Seahawks players Winnipeg Blue Bombers players Canadian Football League Rookie of the Year Award winners Players of American football from Long Beach, California Players of Canadian football from Long Beach, California African-American players of American football African-American players of Canadian football Baltimore Ravens players Calgary Stampeders players Montreal Alouettes players Susan Miller Dorsey High School alumni 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people Los Angeles Harbor College alumni