Matthew "Matt" Saracen is a fictional character in the NBC/DirecTV television drama series Friday Night Lights portrayed by the actor Zach Gilford. He is the former backup quarterback of the Dillon High School Panthers before being thrust into the starting spotlight after Jason Street suffers a career-ending injury. His character is based on Mike Winchell and Chris Comer from the original 1990 book and the 2004 film.

Friday Night Lights is an American sports drama television series developed by Peter Berg and inspired by the 1990 nonfiction book by H. G. Bissinger, which was adapted as the 2004 film of the same name by Berg. Executive producers were Brian Grazer, David Nevins, Sarah Aubrey and Jason Katims who also served as showrunner. The series follows a high school football team in the fictional town of Dillon, a small, close-knit community in rural West Texas. It features an ensemble cast led by Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton, portraying high school football coach Eric Taylor and his wife Tami Taylor, a school faculty member. The primary cast includes characters associated with football and high school. The show uses its small-town backdrop to address many issues in contemporary American culture like family values, school funding, racism, substance use, abortion and lack of economic opportunities.