His years after playing were problematic. In 2014, Barber was arrested by police in Mansfield, Texas, also outside of Dallas, and hospitalized for a mental health assessment.
And according to police reports, he was arrested in 2019 for two misdemeanors of criminal mischief for acts that occurred the previous year in which, while driving, Barber approached two different cars and hit and damaged them. He stated that this did not happen and that his sentence included 12 months probation.
Last year, former Dallas receiver Dez Bryant posted a prominent reel of Barber’s plays on Twitter and wrote that “it’s wrong … we’re just a statistic and moments for most people “.
On Monday, Bryant wrote on Twitter: “Too much to digest, too much to say … This is real life, it can be any of us. We need each other, we need unity.”
Marion Sylvester Barber III was born on June 10, 1983 in Plymouth, Minnesota, west of Minneapolis. Like his father, Barber played at the University of Minnesota, where he was part of a powerful backfield with Laurence Maroney. Barber ran 1,196 yards and 1,269 yards in 2003 and 2004.
The Cowboys selected him in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL Draft.
Football was a family business for the Barbers. In addition to his father, Barber’s brothers, Thomas and Dominique, also played for the University of Minnesota Gophers. Dominique was a defender with the Houston Texans in the NFL.
In a statement Thursday, PJ Fleck, head coach of the Gophers, said: “Marion was one of the best he has ever played in Minnesota, and it’s one of the main reasons a lot of people are fans of Gopher today.”