It's very rare, but how often do you see two brothers line up on the same defense? Though it still might not happen this year, the Green Bay Packers have the opportunity to draft Casey Matthews, the Oregon Ducks star middle linebacker who is the younger brother of near NFL Defensive Player of the Year Clay Matthews.
Casey may not be the dominating physical specimen that Clay is, but he was the leader of the Oregon defense, had 4 interceptions this past season, and forced a crucial Cam Newton fumble in the second half of the BCS Championship Game that almost won the Ducks the game (hmmm, a Super Bowl similarity perhaps...). Casey is a better cover linebacker than Clay and he, himself, believes he has better instincts than his brother. However, the extent to which he converts to a 3-4 defense has yet to be seen, as he is described as more of a 4-3 linebacker.
Still, how awesome would it be to have Casey line up as a middle linebacker from time to time or fill in for injury alongside Clay. Casey is another one of those relentless, hard-working players that Ted Thompson loves to have and seems to have pass rush ability to go with good tackling. A possible third round pick, Green Bay will surely release Nick Barnett this off-season and does not have another middle linebacker to be a fill-in player.
Go Matthews!!
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