Matt Birk

Matthew Robert Birk (born July 23, 1976) is a former gridiron football player, businessman, teacher, and author from Minnesota. Birk spent most of professional football career with the Minnesota Vikings. Since leaving football in 2012, Birk has been involved in local politics in his home state of Minnesota.

Matt Birk
Matt Birk with the Vikings
Personal details
Born
Matthew Robert Birk

(1976-07-23) July 23, 1976
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Adrianna Birk
​
(m. 2002)​
Children8
Residence(s)Burnsville, Minnesota
EducationHarvard University (BEc)
Football career
No. 75, 78, 77
Position:center
Personal information
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:310 lb (141 kg)
Career information
High school:Cretin-Derham Hall
(Saint Paul, Minnesota)
College:Harvard
NFL Draft:1998 / Round: 6 / Pick: 173
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played:210
Games started:187
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Birk was an All-Pro, 6x Pro Bowl selection, Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award recipient, and a Super Bowl champion.[1]

He is Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Jensen's running mate in the 2022 Minnesota gubernatorial election.[2]

Early years

Birk attended Cretin-Derham Hall High School in St. Paul, Minnesota, and was a letterman and standout in football, basketball, and track & field.[3] He was an All-St. Paul Conference honoree, an Academic All-State honoree, and an All-State honoree in both football and basketball. Birk graduated from Cretin-Derham in 1994.

College career

Birk graduated from Harvard University in 1998 with a degree in economics.[1] While playing for the Harvard Crimson, he attained All-Ivy League, All-New England and Division I-AA All-ECAC first team football honors.

Professional career

1998 NFL Draft

Ranked as the No. 16 offensive tackle available,[4] Birk was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the 6th round (173rd overall) of the 1998 NFL Draft.[5] He was described by Sports Illustrated as "maybe the best Ivy League prospect to come along in several years", who "could be a nice developmental type pick".[6] Birk was the first Harvard Crimson lineman to be selected in an NFL draft since Roger Caron in 1985.[7]

Early success and career with the Minnesota Vikings

During his first two seasons with the Vikings, he appeared in 22 games as a backup offensive lineman. In 2000, he took over the starting center position for the Vikings, starting all 16 games and was named to his first Pro Bowl team.[8][9] Birk started every game for the Vikings at center from 2000-2003.[10][11][12]

In 2004, Birk missed the last 4 games of the season due to surgery to treat a sports hernia.[13] He missed the entire 2005 season with a hip injury that required surgery.[14]

Birk returned to form in 2006, anchoring the Vikings offensive line from the center spot and earning his fifth career Pro Bowl selection.[15] In 2007, Birk was named Minnesota Vikings Man of the Year for the sixth year in a row.[16] He also earned his sixth Pro Bowl selection, tying Mick Tingelhoff for most Pro Bowl appearances by a Vikings center.[17][18]

Stint with the Baltimore Ravens and Super Bowl victory

An unrestricted free agent in the 2009 offseason, Birk signed a three-year, $12 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens on March 4. The deal included $6 million guaranteed.[19]

On March 16, 2012, Birk signed a new three-year deal with the Ravens. He won his first career championship during Super Bowl XLVII against the San Francisco 49ers.[20] Birk announced his retirement on February 22, 2013.[21][22]

Post-NFL career

Birk was very briefly the NFL director of football development.[23] In 2019, he founded a private Catholic high school in his hometown of Burnsville, Minnesota. Birk has also been very active in local community activism in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area.[24] He has also been involved in politics in the Minnesota Republican Party.[25]

Business career and political involvement

Birk established the HIKE Foundation in 2002, which seeks to "provide at-risk Twin Cities' children with the educational opportunities needed to excel in the classroom and in life."[26] Birk received the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award in 2011 for his commitment to improving literacy among at-risk youth.[27][28]

In October 2012, Birk publicly spoke out against gay marriage before a Maryland ballot referendum on the Civil Marriage Protection Act which eventually passed.[29] He also penned an op-ed, published in the Star Tribune on October 2, 2012, calling for passage of the Minnesota Marriage Amendment that would amend that state's constitution to prohibit gay marriage; it was defeated in the fall election and gay marriage was legalized in Minnesota in 2013.[30]

Birk announced in February 2013 his intentions to eventually donate his brain to Boston University’s School of Medicine for research into concussions.[31]

After the Ravens won Super Bowl XLVII, Birk chose not to attend the celebratory meeting with President Barack Obama, citing Obama's recent comments in support of Planned Parenthood as contrasting Birk's Catholic and anti-abortion views.[32] On January 19, 2018, Birk spoke at the 45th annual March for Life.[33]

On March 8, 2022, Republican Scott Jensen announced Birk as his running mate in his gubernatorial campaign. The St. Paul Pioneer Press described Birk as an outspoken conservative who opposed same-sex marriage and was skeptical of the government's response to COVID-19.[34]

Personal life

He was named the sixth-smartest athlete in 2010 by the Sporting News.[35] Birk scored a 46 on the Wonderlic Test, the seventh-highest score in NFL history.[36]

Birk is an anti-abortion activist. His wife volunteers at a crisis pregnancy center and he participated in the Maryland March for Life in 2011.[37] He is also a practicing Catholic and father of eight.[38]

References
  1. Van Valkenburg, Kevin (August 27, 2009), "Veteran Birk leads Ravens' young O-line", The Baltimore Sun.
  2. KSTP, Tom Hauser (2022-03-04). "Super Bowl Champ to be Jensen's running mate for MN governor". KSTP.com Eyewitness News. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  3. "Matt Birk doles out Golden Football to Alma Mater". Vikings.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  4. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/nfl/events/1998/nfldraft/topplayers/byposition/OT.html
  5. "1998 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  6. "War Room Value Board - Matt Birk". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 2010-03-13.
  7. "Harvard Drafted Players/Alumni". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  8. "2000 Minnesota Vikings Starters, Roster, & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  9. "Matt Birk '98 Named to NFL Pro Bowl | Sports | The Harvard Crimson". The Crimson. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  10. "2001 Minnesota Vikings Starters, Roster & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  11. "2002 Minnesota Vikings Starters, Roster, & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  12. "2003 Minnesota Vikings Starters, Roster, & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  13. "Vikings' Birk willing to play through pain, but at a price". ESPN.com. August 24, 2005. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  14. "Vikings to place Matt Birk on injured reserve". ESPN.com. August 30, 2005. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  15. "2006 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  16. "NFL: Former Viking's mission to help people out". Brainerd Dispatch. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  17. "2007 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  18. "Matt Birk went from sixth-rounder to hometown success story for Vikings". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  19. Duffy, Mike (March 4, 2009), "Birk Shores Up Ravens at Center", BaltimoreRavens.com, archived from the original on February 14, 2012, retrieved March 4, 2009.
  20. "Super Bowl XLVII - San Francisco 49ers vs. Baltimore Ravens - February 3rd, 2013". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
  21. "Ravens center Matt Birk retires after 15 seasons in NFL". Baltimore Sun. February 22, 2013.
  22. Hanzus, Dan (February 22, 2013). "Baltimore Ravens' Matt Birk announces retirement". National Football League. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  23. "NFL names Matt Birk Director of Football Development". NFL.com. July 10, 2014. Retrieved January 15, 2015.
  24. "Former Viking Matt Birk starts new south metro high school". kare11.com. April 18, 2019. Retrieved 2022-03-05.
  25. "Former Minnesota Viking Matt Birk joins Scott Jensen's gubernatorial ticket". startribune.com. March 8, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
  26. "Matt Birk's HIKE Foundation, Inc". . Retrieved April 1, 2022. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)
  27. "Matt Birk, Baltimore Ravens Center, Named Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year". Huffington Post. February 5, 2012. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  28. "Ravens' Birk earn Walter Payton Man of the Year Award", NFL.com, February 4, 2012.
  29. Matt Birk joins fight against same-sex marriage-Baltimore Sun Retrieved October 4, 2012/
  30. "NFL's Matt Birk: Let's protect marriage -- and speech". Star Tribune. October 2, 2012. Retrieved May 14, 2013.
  31. Baltimore Ravens Player Matt Birk Will Donate His Brain to Boston University For Research
  32. Matt Birk explains skipping Ravens' White House visit Marc Sessler, NFL.com Retrieved June 7, 2013.
  33. "Matt Birk". c-span.org. January 19, 2018. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
  34. "Scott Jensen picks ex-Viking Matt Birk as running mate in campaign for governor". 9 March 2022.
  35. 20 smartest athletes in sports-Sporting News Archived May 23, 2013, at the Wayback Machine Retrieved October 4, 2012.
  36. "11 Best Wonderlic Scores Ever at NFL Scouting Combine". March 2018.
  37. "Matt Birk speaks up for life". Archdiocese of Baltimore. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  38. "Baltimore Ravens' Matt Birk Stays Centered on Christ". National Catholic Register. Retrieved November 3, 2018.

Further reading
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