Officer Mattingly is an athletic, kid-at-heart who possesses enormous hidden gifts—he's a master card player, unbeatable practitioner of self-defense and expert in delivering The Knee of Wisdom.

When the cop who runs a neighborhood gambling den refuses to "cut in" Strunk and Mattingly, he goes to the makeshift casino one night and cleans the place out playing high stakes "Kentucky Three Finger." Mattingly reconnects with an old girlfriend after she's apprehended shoplifting allergy medication for her ailing son.

During his personal time, Mattingly is an accomplished mechanic, driving and maintaining his vintage Ford Mustang Fastback, which proves to be a welcome distraction from his painful addiction to following his beloved Detroit Lions.