StaTuesday: Matthews closing in on Packers' sack record
Clay Matthews is 0.5 sacks away from becoming the Green Bay Packers' all-time leader.
When Ted Thompson traded back into the first round of the 2009 NFL draft to select Clay Matthews, he of course expected the Green Bay Packers were getting a solid, long-term player.
What Thompson didn't know at the time was he had just selected someone who would turn out to be the Packers' all-time leader in sacks.
Matthews, now in his ninth season in Green Bay, is on the precipice of being crowned with that achievement. After recording 1.5 sacks this past Sunday night against Atlanta, Matthews just one-half sack away from tying for the lead and one momentous quarterback takedown from being No. 1.
Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, who played for the Packers from 2000-08, is Green Bay's current sack master, with 74.5. Among the top-10 sack artists in Packers history, Matthews is third in sacks per game behind just Tim Harris and Reggie White (Harris actually is .002 ahead of White) and just ahead of Tony Bennett (by .001).
| PLAYER | GAMES | SACKS | SCK/G |
| Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila | 124 | 74.5 | .60 |
| Clay Matthews | 115 | 74 | .64 |
| Reggie White | 95 | 68.5 | .72 |
| Tim Harris | 76 | 55 | .72 |
| Aaron Kampman | 112 | 54 | .48 |
| Ezra Johnson | 148 | 50 | .34 |
| Tony Bennett | 56 | 36 | .64 |
| Bryce Paup | 64 | 32.5 | .51 |
| Vonnie Holliday | 66 | 32 | .48 |
| Cullen Jenkins | 93 | 29 | .31 |
It of course should be noted that the sack didn't become an official statistic until 1982. However, there wasn't as much player movement either due to the lack of free agency, but on the other hand teams didn't pass nearly as much pre-1982, and thus there were fewer opportunities for a sack.
The lack of opportunity is not the case nowadays.
While he is poised to be Green Bay's all-time sack leader, Matthews ranks 10th among active players, although his .64 sacks per game is fifth among those 10. (Note: All figures through Week 2; Tamba Hali is currently on Kansas City's PUP list.)
| PLAYER | GAMES | SACKS | SCK/G |
| Julius Peppers | 236 | 146 | .62 |
| Terrell Suggs | 199 | 117.5 | .59 |
| Elvis Dumervil | 148 | 99 | .67 |
| Tamba Hali | 172 | 89.5 | .52 |
| James Harrison | 188 | 81.5 | .43 |
| Cameron Wake | 117 | 81.5 | .70 |
| J.J. Watt | 85 | 76 | .89 |
| Von Miller | 90 | 75.5 | .84 |
| Cliff Avril | 138 | 74 | .54 |
| Clay Matthews | 115 | 74 | .64 |
Perhaps Matthews is returning to his heyday, when he had double-digit sacks in four of his first six seasons. Playing more at inside linebacker the past two years didn't help his cause, as he posted some of his worst sack-per-game totals of his career.
| YEAR | GAMES | SACKS | SCK/G |
| 2009 | 16 | 10 | .63 |
| 2010 | 15 | 13.5 | .90 |
| 2011 | 15 | 6 | .40 |
| 2012 | 12 | 13 | 1.1 |
| 2013 | 11 | 7.5 | .69 |
| 2014 | 16 | 11 | .69 |
| 2015 | 16 | 6.5 | .41 |
| 2016 | 12 | 5 | .42 |
| 2017 | 2 | 1.5 | .75 |
Dave Heller is the author of Ken Williams: A Slugger in Ruth's Shadow, Facing Ted Williams - Players From the Golden Age of Baseball Recall the Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived and As Good As It Got: The 1944 St. Louis Browns
