Former Browns linebacker Clay Matthews has been named as one of the 25 semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2019.
Matthews played 19 seasons in the NFL, the first 16 for the Browns. He was voted to the Pro Bowl four times and was named All-Pro three times. He had more than 1400 tackles and 62 sacks while in Cleveland. This is the third time Matthews has made it to the semifinal round of the Hall of Fame vote, having accomplished the feat in 2012 and 2017.
The next step for Matthews will be to try to get to the list of 15 finalists that will be voted on prior to the Super Bowl. That list of the final 15 will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 3. However, the list increases to 18 finalists with the inclusion of the recommended nominees of the Hall of Fame’s Contributors and Seniors Committees.
Some of the big names in this year's crop of semifinalists include three first-year eligible players – cornerback Champ Bailey, tight end Tony Gonzalez and safety Ed Reed. The entire list is below:
The 2019 Contributor Finalists are Pat Bowlen and Gil Brandt and the Senior Finalist is Johnny Robinson.
