Marion Sylvester Barber III (June 10, 1983 – June 1, 2022) was an American professional football player who was a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. Ther ...

for seven seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). After playing college football for the

Minnesota Golden Gophers The Minnesota Golden Gophers (commonly shortened to Gophers) are the college sports teams of the University of Minnesota. The university fields a total of 25 (12 men's, 13 women's) teams in both men's and women's sports and competes in the Big Te ...

, he was drafted by the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

in the fourth round of the

2005 NFL Draft The 2005 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 23–24, 2005. The league also he ...

. He was selected to the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

in 2007 during his six-year tenure with the Cowboys. He played for the Chicago Bears in 2011. He was the older brother of former Houston Texans

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly dif ...

Dominique Barber and

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

Thomas Barber, and the son of former New York Jets running back

Marion Barber Jr. Marion Sylvester Barber Jr. (born December 6, 1959) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL) from 1982 to 1988. He played college football for the Minn ...

He was also a cousin of

Peyton Barber Kenneth Peyton Barber (born June 27, 1994) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He played college football for the Auburn Tigers football, Auburn Tigers and signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in ...

Early years

Barber attended

Wayzata High School Wayzata High School is a comprehensive public high school in Plymouth, Minnesota, United States, a suburb of Minneapolis. The high school, operated by Wayzata Public Schools, had about 3669 students in grades 9 to 12 as of 2021-22, making it Mi ...

Wayzata, Minnesota Wayzata ( ) is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. A western suburb of the Twin Cities, Wayzata is situated along the northern shore of Lake Minnetonka about west of Minneapolis. Known for its small-town character and lakeside l ...

, and was a standout in football,

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

, and track. In football, he was a SuperPrep and PrepStar All-Midwest and consensus All-State honoree as a senior running back and as a defensive back. During his last season with the Trojans, Barber amassed 1,778 rushing yards with 18 touchdowns and led his team with 10 interceptions (three of which came against Gatorade National Player of the Year and future Minnesota Twins catcher

Joe Mauer Joseph Patrick Mauer (born April 19, 1983) is an American former professional baseball catcher and first baseman, who spent his entire 15-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Minnesota Twins. A six-time All-Star, Mauer is the only c ...

). In baseball, he was an Honorable Mention All-Conference center fielder. In his first and only track season, Barber qualified for the 2001 Minnesota State Class AA Championships in the

100 meters The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contes ...

. He finished the season with a 100m time of 10.9 seconds.

College career

Like his father, Barber attended the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

where he played college football for the

. The coaches originally wanted him to play

, but after seeing him run, they kept him at

where he eventually ranked fourth on the school's all-time rushing list with 3,276 yards, second with 4,495 all-purpose yards, and second in rushing

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...

with 35, one better than his father,

Also beginning in his sophomore year, he teamed up with

Laurence Maroney Laurence Maroney (born February 5, 1985) is a former American football running back who played five seasons in the National Football League. He played college football at Minnesota and was drafted by the New England Patriots 21st overall in the 2 ...

to form one of the best

duos in college football, becoming the first-teammates in

Division I (NCAA) NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athletic ...

history to each rush for 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons. He was an All-

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

selection in 2003 as a

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

sophomore.

Professional career

2005 NFL Combine

Dallas Cowboys (2005–2010)

After forgoing his senior season of college, the

selected Barber in the fourth round, with the 109th overall selection, of the

. A toe infection that required surgery and some preseason fumbles left him at the bottom of the depth chart. An injury to Julius Jones and the ineffectiveness of Anthony Thomas allowed Barber to emerge, and he responded with 95 yards rushing against

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

and 127 yards against

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. Along with his pass-blocking and

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

abilities, this solidified his position as the backup running back for the Cowboys. Marion-Barber-2008-Pro-Bowl

Although he was the backup to Julius Jones in 2006, Barber found a niche as a third-down rusher and a closer of games, emerging as an excellent red-zone

. He led the

NFC NFC may refer to: Psychology * Need for cognition, in psychology * Need for closure, social psychological term Sports * NFC Championship Game, the National Football Conference Championship Game * NCAA Football Championship (Philippines) * Nati ...

with 14 rushing

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...

s in 2006 and was the first non- placekicker since

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

to lead the Cowboys in scoring (96 points). During the 2007 season, Barber's power running back style earned him the nickname Marion the Barbarian and he was the league leader in breaking tackles, reflecting his personal mantra of "hit or get hit". Barber rushed for 975 yards on 204 carries and 10 rushing touchdowns with a 4.8 yards-per-carry rushing average. He caught 44 passes for 282 yards and two touchdowns. On December 18, 2007, he was named to his first

despite officially being a backup. Barber received the start in the divisional playoff loss to the New York Giants. Dallas offered Barber, now as a starter, the highest tender as a

restricted free agent A restricted free agent (RFA) is a type of free agent in the National Football League (NFL), National Hockey League (NHL), or National Basketball Association (NBA). Such players have special restrictions on the terms under which they can retain ...

in 2008. On May 20, 2008, he signed a seven-year deal for $45 million with the Cowboys with $16 million guaranteed. Before becoming a starter, there was already a worry as to whether his running style could shortened his career; with the additional work, his career longevity was discussed more often, as his yards per carry started to drop down. During the 2009 season, the emergence of

Tashard Choice Tashard J. Choice (born November 20, 1984) is a former American football running back in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins, Buffalo Bills and the Indianapolis Colts. He played college football at Georgia ...

and

Felix Jones Felix Jones Jr. (born May 8, 1987) is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers. He played college football at the University of Arkansas and was drafted by t ...

, and injury problems limited his success. However, he played in 15 games despite a torn

quadriceps muscle The quadriceps femoris muscle (, also called the quadriceps extensor, quadriceps or quads) is a large muscle group that includes the four prevailing muscles on the front of the thigh. It is the sole extensor muscle of the knee, forming a large ...

. Barber had a disappointing 2010 season as the entire Cowboys team struggled from game one. In 13 games, Barber rushed for 374 yards on 113 carries for a 3.3 yard per carry average, the lowest of his career. His four rushing touchdowns were also the lowest of his career.

Chicago Bears (2011)

Barber was released by Dallas on July 28, 2011. On July 30, 2011, the Chicago Bears signed Barber to a two-year, $5 million contract. Barber beat out

Chester Taylor Chester Lamar Taylor (born September 22, 1979) also known as Che Tay is a former American football running back in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the sixth round of the 2002 NFL Draft. In 2006, he signed ...

for the Chicago Bears' second string running back position after

Matt Forte Matthew Garrett Forte (born December 10, 1985) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Tulane Green Wave and was drafted ...

. On August 27 in the third pre-season game, Barber hurt his

calf muscle The triceps surae consists of two muscles located at the calf – the two-headed gastrocnemius and the soleus. These muscles both insert into the calcaneus, the bone of the heel of the human foot, and form the major part of the muscle of the ...

and missed the first three games of the regular season due to the injury. In Week 14 against the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...

, replacing an injured Forte, Barber scored a touchdown and had his first 100-yard game since 2009. However, he ran

out of bounds In sports, out of bounds (or out-of-bounds) refers to being outside the playing boundaries of the field. Due to the chaotic nature of play, it is normal in many sports for players and/or the ball to go out of bounds frequently during a game. T ...

when the Bears needed to run out the clock, allowing the Broncos enough time to overtake the Bears and win the game. In the 2011 season Barber had 422 yards on 114 carries. Following the 2011 season, Barber announced his retirement from the NFL on March 23, 2012.

NFL career statistics

Personal life and death

In 2014, Barber was detained by police and given a mental evaluation following an incident. In 2019, Barber was arrested on two counts of criminal mischief for causing damage to two cars while he was running. He pleaded no contest and was sentenced to one year of probation, 60 hours of community service, and a $2,000 fine in April 2022. Barber was found dead in his apartment in

Frisco, Texas Frisco is a city in Collin and Denton counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and about from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Its population was 200,509 at the 2 ...

on June 1, 2022, at the age of 38. An autopsy revealed that Barber died of

heat stroke Heat stroke or heatstroke, also known as sun stroke, is a severe heat illness that results in a body temperature greater than , along with red skin, headache, dizziness, and confusion. Sweating is generally present in exertional heatstroke, ...

; according to police, he often exercised in "sauna-like conditions", and he had set the thermostat in his apartment to before he died. His death was ruled an accident.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barber, Marion 1983 births 2022 deaths 21st-century African-American sportspeople Accidental deaths in Texas African-American players of American football American football running backs Barber family Chicago Bears players Dallas Cowboys players Deaths from hyperthermia Minnesota Golden Gophers football players National Conference Pro Bowl players People from Plymouth, Minnesota Players of American football from Minnesota Sportspeople from the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area