Matt Blanchard

Matthew Ryan Blanchard (born March 21, 1989) is an American football quarterback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. He was signed by the Bears after going undrafted in the 2012 NFL Draft.

High school career
Blanchard attended Lake Zurich High School, where he was teammates with Anthony Castonzo.

College career
Blanchard played his most notable years of college football at a Division III university University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Before his years at UW-Whitewater, he played two years (one as an injured redshirting freshman) at a Division II University, Northern Michigan University on a partial athletic scholarship. As an All-American quarterback, Blanchard maintained an accurate 70.4 percent average in pass-completion, resulting in a total of 44 touchdown passes in the duration of his career as a starter at UW-Whitewater. In addition to his completion efficiency, Blanchard demonstrated accuracy by throwing only five interceptions throughout his starting career. He went undefeated at UW-Whitewater all three years on the team, earning three national championships. After completing his college career, he was invited to play at the Players All-Star Classic.

Chicago Bears
Blanchard was signed by the Chicago Bears after being invited to the team's rookie mini camp in May of 2012. After having a breakthrough pre-season, he earned his spot on the 8-man practice squad. The Bears signed Blanchard to the practice squad on September 1, where he can be developed, or activated to the 53-man roster in an emergency situation. Blanchard was released on December 4. On January 7, 2013, Blanchard was brought back by the Bears.

Personal life
Blanchard graduated high school from Lake Zurich High in June 2007. He attended Northern Michigan University for two football seasons; redshirting as a freshman with a broken right thumb. In the spring semester of 2009, Blanchard transferred to UW-Whitewater. During his second year at UW-Whitewater, Blanchard broke his right thumb for a second time. In December 2011, Blanchard graduated with an degree in Physical Education.