Matthew Michael Hasselbeck (born September 25, 1975) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Seattle Seahawks. He played college football for the Boston College Eagles and was selected in the sixth round of the 1998 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers. After a season on the practice squad and two seasons backing up Brett Favre, he was traded to the Seattle Seahawks in 2001, where he spent the majority of his career. Hasselbeck led Seattle to six playoff appearances, including the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance during the 2005 season. He was selected to three Pro Bowls in his career. Hasselbeck also played for the Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts. He is a former analyst for ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown.
In 2024, Hasselbeck was hired by The Ensworth School in Nashville, Tennessee to serve as the offensive coordinator of the high school’s football team, led by his brother and head Ensworth football coach Tim Hasselbeck.
Hasselbeck is the son of Mary Beth "Betsy" (Rueve) and Don Hasselbeck, a former New England Patriots tight end.
Matt and his younger brothers Tim and Nathanael grew up in Norfolk, Massachusetts, and attended Xaverian Brothers High School in Westwood.
He was selected as an honorable mention All-American by USA Today as a high school senior.
Hasselbeck attended Boston College near his family's hometown. He played for the Boston College Eagles football team from 1994 to 1997, including two years with his younger brother Tim. Hasselbeck finished his college career as the starting quarterback (a position his brother Tim would later hold with the Eagles). Matt had career totals of 4,548 passing yards, 22 passing touchdowns, and 26 interceptions. He graduated with a degree in marketing.
Hasselbeck was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the sixth round (187th overall) of the 1998 NFL draft. He joined the team's practice squad in 1998 and was the backup for starting quarterback Brett Favre for the 1999 and 2000 NFL seasons. In Week 15 of the 1999 season, he threw his first professional touchdown on a nine-yard pass to Jeff Thomason in the 24–20 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. He had his first meaningful action in Week 11 of the 2000 season. He went 9-of-18 for 93 yards and a touchdown in a 20–15 road loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Hasselbeck joined former Packers head coach Mike Holmgren and the Seattle Seahawks on March 2, 2001. The Packers traded him, along with their first draft pick (17th overall), to the Seahawks for their first (10th overall) and third-round draft picks (72nd overall).
In his early years in Seattle, Hasselbeck battled for playing time with Trent Dilfer. He started all 13 games he appeared in during the 2001 season. He passed for 2,023 yards, seven touchdowns, and eight interceptions.
In Week 12 of the 2002 season, against the Kansas City Chiefs, Hasselbeck had 362 yards and three touchdowns in the 39–32 win. He was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week for Week 12. In Week 13, he had 427 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions in the 31–24 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. In Week 17, he passed for 449 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions to go with a rushing touchdown. in a 31–28 road overtime win against the San Diego Chargers. He finished the 2002 season with 3,075 yards, 15 touchdowns, and ten interceptions.
After a strong finish in 2002, Hasselbeck entered 2003 as the unquestioned starter. In Week 12, he had 333 yards and five touchdowns in a road overtime 44–41 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Hasselbeck started all 16 games, leading Seattle to a 10–6 record for the first time since 1988 and a Wild Card berth. He also was selected to the Pro Bowl. The 2003 NFC Wild Card Game against the Green Bay Packers went into overtime where, at the overtime coin toss, Hasselbeck famously said "we want the ball and we're going to score". During the second overtime possession for the Seahawks, Hasselbeck threw an interception to Packers defensive back Al Harris which was returned 52 yards down the sideline for a touchdown. It gave Green Bay a 33–27 overtime victory.
In 2004, Hasselbeck won the 2004 NFL Quarterback Challenge. He was named NFC Offensive Player of the Month for December. He passed for 3,382 yards, 22 touchdowns, and 15 interceptions to go with a rushing touchdown in the 2004 season. He led Seattle to their first NFC West title since conference realignment in 2002.
In 2005, Hasselbeck had one of his most productive career performances, earning the highest passer rating in the NFC, and leading the Seahawks to the playoffs for the third consecutive year while clinching the NFC's top seed. In the 2005 season, he had 3,459 yards, 24 touchdowns, and nine interceptions to go with a rushing touchdown. He led the Seahawks to Super Bowl XL, in which they lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers, and was the starting quarterback for the NFC in the 2006 Pro Bowl.
In Week 6 of the 2005 season, Hasselbeck had 227 passing yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions in a 42–30 win over the New York Giants. Hasselbeck led the Seahawks to a 4–1 record to start the 2006 season before being seriously injured on Week 7. Minnesota Vikings linebacker E. J. Henderson rolled into Hasselbeck's right leg. The result was a second degree MCL sprain, causing Hasselbeck to miss four games. Hasselbeck contended that Henderson could have avoided injuring him. Upon returning he subsequently broke fingers on his non-throwing hand, but continued to lead his team to a 9–7 record and the divisional round of the post-season. The fourth-seeded Seahawks defeated the Dallas Cowboys 21–20 in the wild card round in Seattle, then lost to the top-seeded Chicago Bears in overtime, 27–24.
In Week 14 of the 2007 season, Hasselbeck had 272 yards and four touchdowns in a 42–21 win over the Arizona Cardinals. In 2007, Hasselbeck led his team to its fourth consecutive division title and fifth consecutive playoff appearance. He had 3,966 passing yards, 28 touchdowns (both career highs), 62.6% completion percentage, and a 91.4 passer rating. He threw for 229 yards in a 35–14 NFC wild card victory over the Washington Redskins. The third-seeded Seahawks lost in the divisional round to the NFC's No. 2 seed Green Bay Packers, losing 42–20 in the snow at Lambeau Field despite an early 14–0 lead.
Hasselbeck set career highs in yards, attempts, and touchdown passes in the 2007 season and was elected to his third Pro Bowl.
In 2008, Hasselbeck suffered from a back injury that affected a nerve in his lower back, creating a weakness in his leg that brought on a knee injury. Hasselbeck twisted his back awkwardly in the preseason opener on August 8 at Minnesota and missed the rest of the preseason. His bulging disk was diagnosed and treated with injections and he opened the regular season as the starter, but he hurt his knee after a hit early in the Seahawks' 44–6 loss to the New York Giants on October 5. He also received a helmet-to-helmet hit against the Arizona Cardinals. These injuries caused Hasselbeck to miss most of the 2008 NFL season.
In the 2009 season opener, things did not start out well for Hasselbeck, who threw two interceptions in the first quarter. After that Hasselbeck dominated the rest of the way, completing 25 of 36 passes for 279 yards and three touchdowns in their 28–0 win over the St. Louis Rams. During Week 2 of the season, Hasselbeck fractured his rib against the San Francisco 49ers and missed the next two games against the Chicago Bears (Week 3) and the Indianapolis Colts (Week 4). During Week 5, playing the Jacksonville Jaguars, Hasselbeck threw four touchdown passes in the Seahawks' second shutout of the season, beating Jacksonville 41–0. In Week 6, Hasselbeck played his career-worst, losing to the Arizona Cardinals 27–3. In a Week 16 road game at Lambeau Field, Hasselbeck had one touchdown and four interceptions (three of which set up their opponents touchdowns) as the Seahawks would suffer a 48–10 loss to the Green Bay Packers. He finished the 2009 season with 3,029 yards, 17 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions.