Matthias Askew (born July 1, 1982) is an American former professional football defensive tackle. He was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the fourth round of the 2004 NFL draft.^[1] He played college football at Michigan State.

Askew was also a member of the Washington Redskins, Denver Broncos, Detroit Lions and Toronto Argonauts.

Askew started 19 of 35 games during his career at Michigan State University, recording 144 tackles with seven sacks, 18.5 stops for losses, 24 quarterback pressures, an interception and eight pass deflections.

Askew was selected in the 2004 NFL draft by Cincinnati after leaving college early to declare for the NFL draft. He was projected by many to be a possible first round pick the following year had he stayed in school.

The Bengals waived Askew during the 2006 pre-season shortly after he was arrested for resisting arrest earlier in the summer. During the arrest he was tasered.^[2] Later he had brought suit against the city of Cincinnati, and charges were dropped.

On August 13, 2007, Askew signed with the Washington Redskins. However, he was released at the conclusion of the preseason on September 1 and spent the season out of football.

Askew was re-signed by the Redskins on March 17, 2008. He was released again during final cuts on August 30.

Askew was signed to the practice squad of the Denver Broncos on November 3, 2008. He was waived on September 4, 2009.

Askew was signed to the Detroit Lions practice squad on September 23, 2009.

On October 20, 2010, Askew signed a practice roster agreement with the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League. He was released by the Argonauts on June 8, 2011.

In 2006, Askew was arrested after he refused to move his parked car out of an illegal parking spot. He was tasered by police during the incident. He is currently suing the city after the charges were dropped.^[3]

• Toronto Argonauts bio
• Detroit Lions bio
• Denver Broncos bio
• Michigan State Spartans bio