Off the Field: Robert Mathis

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Colts defensive end Robert Mathis might not be the biggest name on the field but he is a force to be reckoned with. For the past four years, he has led the team in sacks. He's a guy that lets his play do the talking for him.

"You have two ears and one mouth. Listen twice as much as you speak. So it's just certain words, certain things I go by because I observe a lot and people will tell you anything you want to know about them if you just listen to them. My mom taught me that awhile back and it holds up," said Mathis.

Mathis grew up in Atlanta. He's the youngest of six kids and, before he ever played organized football, he was a choir boy. But when asked if he can still sing, he joked, “I couldn't sing when I was in the choir."

Mathis always had to prove his ability. Coming out of high school, only one college offered him a scholarship: Alabama A&M -- a small Division I school.

"Pretty much the odds were stacked against me because I was an offensive guard and a defensive end...200 pounds soaking wet and probably 5'10" or 5'11". So they gave me a shot, they actually gave me the last scholarship of that year and I just took it and had to take it and run with it," Mathis said.

Like always, Mathis showed the doubters they were wrong. But there is one thing he wished he could have changed. When asked what his greatest disappointment or failure was, Mathis recalled his lack of a relationship with his father.

"I would say not establishing a relationship with my dad. He passed in 2000 but we didn't establish that relationship and a lot of things that me and my brother missed out on because that male presence in your life. So a lot of things we do, we learned as we go," he said.

But Mathis has a mother he adores.

“It was my mom, she was the harder worker...single parent going to work, going to church, you know, and just kept us on the right path," he said.

That path led Mathis to a five-year extension in 2006 worth $30 million. Mathis said he can't help but splurge a little on his four cars.

"I love cars. So I'm kinda fighting the demons off on that. But I think those demons are going to win out," said Mathis.

As far as cooking and cleaning, Mathis says he can do it all, but he chooses not to.

"I clean but I don't cook," he said

Mathis lists his chefs as Ruth's Chris, McDonald's and Cracker Barrel.