Matt Leo

Last updated

Matt Leo
Philadelphia Eagles
Position:Defensive / football operations assistant
Personal information
Born: (1992-05-08) 8 May 1992 (age 31)
Adelaide, South Australia
Height:6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Weight:280 lb (127 kg)
Career information
High school:St Michael’s College
College: Iowa State
CFL Draft: 2021G  / Round: 4 / Pick: 35
Undrafted: 2020
Career history
As a player:
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
As a coach:
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com  ·  PFR

Matthew Leo [1] (born 8 May 1992) is an Australian former American football defensive end and coach who is a defensive and football operations assistant for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Iowa State and spent three seasons with the Eagles as a player, joining them through the International Player Pathway Program (IPPP).

Contents

Early life and education

Matthew Leo was born on 8 May 1992 in Adelaide, South Australia, [2] [3] and raised in the suburb of Semaphore. He played Australian rules football for St Michael's College, Adelaide, in year 10. [4] However his passion was rugby league and he played for a club in Adelaide. [5]

He worked as a plumber before playing American football professionally. [6] [7] [8] He went to college at Arizona Western College [9] before going to Iowa State, making his debut at the age of 26. [10] [8] He was a medical redshirt in 2017. [11] [12] [13] He had 33 tackles and 3 sacks in his college football career. [14] [8] He was named first-team Academic All-Big 12 in 2019. [15]

Professional career

On 27 April 2020, Leo was allocated to the Philadelphia Eagles as part of the International Player Pathway Program. [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] He was waived during final roster cuts on 4 September 2020, [21] and signed to the practice squad under an international player exemption two days later. [22] [23] He signed a reserve/future contract with the team after the season on 4 January 2021. [24]

Leo was selected by the Edmonton Elks in the fourth round (35th overall) of the 2021 CFL Global Draft in April 2021. [25] On 4 May 2021, he was given an NFL roster exemption as an international player for a second season. [26]

On 31 August 2021, Leo was waived by the Eagles and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. [27] [28] He signed a reserve/future contract with the Eagles on 18 January 2022. [29]

On 30 August 2022, Leo was waived by the Eagles and signed to the practice squad the next day. [30] [31] On 15 February 2023, Leo signed a reserve/future contract with the Eagles. [32]

On 25 July, 2023, Leo announced his retirement from the NFL. [33] Soon after, he was hired as a defensive and football operations assistant on the coaching staff. [34]

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References

  1. ↑ "Matthew Leo". ESPN.com. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  2. ↑ "How 'Friday Night Lights' helped pave the way for Matt Leo to join the Philadelphia Eagles". pennlive. 30 April 2020.
  3. ↑ "Matt Leo Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  4. ↑ Matt Leo Eagles Profile
  5. ↑ Adelaide rugby league tragic becomes next Aussie in NFL Pathway Program following Jordan Mailata, Valentine Holmes by Melanie Dinjaski for Nine.com.au 6 February 2020
  6. ↑ "Matt Leo joins surprisingly long line of Philadelphia Eagles from Australia". 16 May 2020.
  7. ↑ Bowen, Les (6 May 2020). "He's gone from Australian plumber's apprentice to Eagles signee, but Matt Leo is just getting started". www.inquirer.com.
  8. 1 2 3 "From plumbing to clogging gaps, the incredible story of new Eagles DE Matt Leo". www.philadelphiaeagles.com.
  9. ↑ "From smoko to the big smoke: Matt Leo lands in Philly". ESPN.com. 8 May 2020.
  10. ↑ "How Matt Leo went from a plumber's apprentice to an NFL contract". www.sportingnews.com. 14 August 2021.
  11. ↑ McMullen, John. "Matt Leo Friday Night Lights Dream Reaches Eagles". Sports Illustrated Philadelphia Eagles News, Analysis and More.
  12. ↑ Birch, Tommy. "From plumber to promising playmaker: The story of Iowa State's Matt Leo". Des Moines Register.
  13. ↑ Gowton, Brandon Lee (29 June 2020). "Eagles Rookie Profile: 5 things to know about Matt Leo". Bleeding Green Nation.
  14. ↑ "Matt Leo shows just how much he's learned in senior season at Iowa State". www.thegazette.com.
  15. ↑ "Matt Leo's improbable journey from Aussie plumber to the NFL". ESPN.com. 7 June 2020.
  16. ↑ Grotz, Bob (30 April 2020). "Leo chasing his dream role with the Eagles". The Delaware County Daily Times.
  17. ↑ Call, Nick Fierro The Morning (7 May 2020). "Eagles' Australian connection gets stronger with Matt Leo". Press of Atlantic City.
  18. ↑ Apody, Jamie (1 May 2020). "Philadelphia Eagles sign rookie defensive end Matt Leo, a former plumber from Australia". 6abc Philadelphia.
  19. ↑ "Australian DE Matt Leo can thank Friday Night Lights for starting his football journey". RSN. 2 May 2020.
  20. ↑ "From plumbing to the Philadelphia Eagles: The remarkable journey of Australian DE Matt Leo". American Football International. 29 April 2020.
  21. ↑ McPherson, Chris (4 September 2020). "Eagles make five more roster moves". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  22. ↑ McPherson, Chris (6 September 2020). "Eagles announce practice squad that includes QB Josh McCown". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  23. ↑ "Aussie NFL rookie's unusual team bonding". wwos.nine.com.au.
  24. ↑ Erby, Glenn (4 January 2021). "Philadelphia Eagles sign 9 players to reserve/future contracts". USAToday.com. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  25. ↑ "2021 Global Draft Tracker". CFL.ca. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
  26. ↑ "Four Players Added to 2021 Rosters Through International Player Pathway Program". NFL.com. 4 May 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  27. ↑ McPherson, Chris (31 August 2021). "Eagles announce initial 53-man roster". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
  28. ↑ "Eagles agree to terms with 15 players to join the practice squad". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. 1 September 2021.
  29. ↑ McPherson, Chris (18 January 2022). "Eagles sign 11 players to Reserve/Futures contracts". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
  30. ↑ McPherson, Chris (30 August 2022). "Eagles announce initial 53-man roster". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
  31. ↑ McPherson, Chris (31 August 2022). "Eagles sign 15 players to the practice squad". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
  32. ↑ "Eagles sign 9 players to Reserve/Futures deals". theeagleswire.usatoday.com. 15 February 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  33. ↑ "Eagles' 31-year-old defensive end project decides to retire". NBC Sports. 25 July 2023.
  34. ↑ Hare, Jacob (7 August 2023). "Eagles Hire Newly-Retired DE To Coaching Staff". Sports Illustrated .
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