Matthias Farley (born July 15, 1992) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

at Notre Dame. Farley was signed by the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in 2016. He has also played for the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

, the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

and the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

College career

Farley played in 52 games (26 starts) in four seasons at Notre Dame and recorded 192

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position) A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent ...

, 9.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, eight

interceptions In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team bu ...

, 13 passes defensed and one forced

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful h ...

. He began his collegiate career as a

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

and

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

in 2011. He moved to

in 2012.

Professional career

Arizona Cardinals

On April 30, 2016, the

signed Farley to a three-year, $1.62 million contract after he went undrafted in the

2016 NFL draft The 2016 NFL draft was the 81st annual draft of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park in Chicago. The draft beg ...

. Throughout

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events ...

, Farley competed for a roster spot as a backup safety and

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

contributor against Chris Clemons, Marqui Christian, Durell Eskridge, and Tyrequek Zimmerman. On September 3, the Cardinals waived Farley as part of final roster cuts.

Indianapolis Colts

2016

On September 4, 2016, the

claimed Farley off of waivers. Upon joining the team, head coach Chuck Pagano named him the third

free safety Safety (S), historically known as a safetyman, is a position in gridiron football on the American football positions#Defense, defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two var ...

on the Colts' depth chart, behind Clayton Geathers and T. J. Green. He made his professional regular season debut in the Colts' season-opening 39–35 loss to the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

. The following week, Farley recorded two solo tackles during a 34–20 loss at the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

in Week 2. He made his first career tackle on running back C. J. Anderson in the fourth quarter after Anderson caught a six-yard pass. On January 1, 2017, Farley tied his season-high of two solo tackles in the Colts' 24–20 victory against the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

. He finished his rookie season in with 11 combined tackles (eight solo) in 16 games and zero starts.

2017

During organized team activities and training camp, he competed for a job as a backup safety against T. J. Green, Andrew Williamson, Tyvis Powell, Lee Hightower, and Tyson Graham. He became the frontrunner for the role of starting strong safety after rookie first round pick Malik Hooker sustained numerous injuries throughout OTA's and training camp. Defensive coordinator Ted Monachino named Farley the starting strong safety to begin the regular season, along with free safety Darius Butler. He made his first career start in the Colts' season-opener against the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

and recorded ten combined tackles (eight solo) in their 46–9 loss. On October 1, 2017, Farley made ten combined tackles (four solo), a pass deflection, and made his first career interception off a pass by quarterback

Russell Wilson Russell Carrington Wilson (born November 29, 1988) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He has primarily played for the Seattle Seahawks. With the Sea ...

in the Colts' 46–18 loss at the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

in Week 4. In Week 14, Farley recorded nine combined tackles, broke up a pass, and intercepted a pass by quarterback Joe Webb during a 13–7 loss at the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

. The following week, he collected a career-high 11 combined tackles (three solo) in the Colts' 25–13 loss to the Broncos. Farley finished the season with 98 combined tackles (60 solo), seven pass deflections, and two interceptions in 16 games and 15 starts. Pro Football Focus gave Farley an overall grade of 82.2, ranking 24th among all qualified safeties in 2017.

2018–2019

In 2018, Farley was named the backup strong safety behind Clayton Geathers. He played in five games with one start before being placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

on October 12, 2018 with shoulder, groin, and wrist injuries. On August 26, 2019, Farley was released by the Colts.

New York Jets

On August 30, 2019, Farley signed with the

. Farley was released during final roster cuts on September 5, 2020, but was re-signed two days later.

Tennessee Titans

On March 30, 2021, Farley was signed by the

to a one-year deal.

Las Vegas Raiders

On July 21, 2022, Farley was signed by the

Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West ...

. He was waived on August 30, and signed to the

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

the next day. Farley was elevated to the active roster in the first three game of the regular season, against

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC W ...

, Cardinals and Titans, and reverted the next day to the practice squad. On September 29, the Raiders signed Farley to the active roster from the practice squad.

Carolina Panthers

On September 19, 2023, Farley was signed to the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on November 4. He was released on November 13. Farley was re-signed to the practice squad on November 28. He was not signed to a reserve/future contract and thus became a free agent at the end of the season upon the expiration of his practice squad contract.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Personal life

Farley was raised by his parents, Mark and Falinda Farley, and has four brothers and two sisters named Timon, Nathan, Charis, Kenan, Joy and

Silas Silas or Silvanus (; Greek: Σίλας/Σιλουανός; fl. 1st century AD) was a leading member of the Early Christian community, who according to the New Testament accompanied Paul the Apostle on his second missionary journey. Name and ...

. He does charity work, kayaks, and plays the ukulele and kazoo. He also has a German shorthaired pointer named Harper.

References

External links

Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Farley, Matthias 1992 births Living people Players of American football from Charlotte, North Carolina American football safeties Charlotte Christian School alumni Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Arizona Cardinals players Indianapolis Colts players New York Jets players Tennessee Titans players Carolina Panthers players American football wide receivers