Matthews trained with his older brother, Clay, a linebacker for the Green Bay Packers, near their home in Los Angeles. He says the two worked on just about everything together from technique to strength-training to speed work. "We did a lot of tire pulls and ran stairs. Basically we did just about anything that burns the legs out," says Matthews, whose father, Clay Jr., played 19 seasons in the NFL. "The first few days (of camp) you have to slow it down because there were no off-season workouts and all of that. But right now I think just about everyone out here is starting to look and feel pretty good."
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Shaw predicted that many players would have to watch out for early-season injuries, and added that anyone trying to get back in shape after some kind of layoff needs to take precautions.
"Injuries can be hard to predict, but I think this year you will see a lot of soft tissue injuries like hamstring and quadriceps pulls," says Shaw. "The explosive movements and fast starting, stopping, and cutting are very hard on an athlete's muscles. The guys who haven't worked hard in the off-season aren't going to be ready to go 100% right away."
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