BURBANK, Calif. – February 9, 2011 – Super Bowl champion Clay Matthews -- who helped lead the Green Bay Packers to victory in Super Bowl XLV by causing a pivotal fourth-quarter fumble – visited NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” tonight, February 9 (11:35 p.m.-12:35 a.m. ET).

Leno began the interview by asking Matthews if he knew that his fourth-quarter tackle would be a game changer.

Matthews replied, "I didn't. You know I just figured it was another play in the game, but you know now that I think I'm able to reflect on that, you know, it was definitely a game changer." Matthews continued: "They had the momentum, they were driving to score with the go-ahead lead and you know, we were able to put some points on the board getting that turnover."

Matthews also let the audience in on what he said to Pittsburgh Steeler quarterback Ben Roethlisberger after he nearly picked off a pass in the third quarter.

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In just his second year in the NFL, linebacker Matthews has become a recognized force when he was declared the runner-up for the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year this season. A former walk-on at USC, where his father Clay Sr. and uncle Bruce earlier starred for the Trojans, Matthews also was named to the 2011 Pro Bowl roster.

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Tracy St.Pierre, NBC Entertainment Publicity, (818) 777-2940, tracy.stpierre@nbcuni.com