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{{Infobox NFL biography
{{Infobox NFL biography
|image=Erich Barnes.jpg
|image=Erich Barnes.jpg
|caption=Barnes from 1957 Purdue yearbook
|caption=Barnes {{circa}} 1957
|number=24, 49, 40
|number=24, 49, 40
|position=[[Defensive back]]
|position=[[Defensive back]]

Revision as of 04:23, 5 May 2022

Erich Barnes
refer to caption
Barnes c. 1957
No. 24, 49, 40
Position:Defensive back
Personal information
Born:(1935-07-04)July 4, 1935
Elkhart, Indiana, U.S.
Died:April 29, 2022(2022-04-29) (aged 86)
Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, U.S.
Career information
High school:Elkhart Central (Elkhart, Indiana)
College:Purdue
NFL draft:1958 / round: 4 / pick: 42
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Interceptions:45
Interception yards:853
Touchdowns:7
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Erich Theodore Barnes (/ˈiːrɪtʃ/ EE-ritch;[1] July 4, 1935 – April 29, 2022) was an American professional football player who was a defensive back in the National Football League (NFL), where he was a six-time Pro Bowler. Before the NFL, he was an all-around athlete at Purdue University (1956–1958), where one of his teammates was future NFL star quarterback Len Dawson.

Early life

Barnes was born in Elkhart, Indiana, on July 4, 1935.[2][3] His father, Sylvester, worked as a real estate investor; his mother, Lura, was a housewife.[2] He attended Elkhart Central High School in his hometown.[3] He then studied at Purdue University, where he played offensive and defensive halfback,[2] left end, and cornerback for the Purdue Boilermakers.[4] He registered 257 rushing yards on 62 carries, 319 yards on 20 receptions, 136 yards on seven kickoff returns, and 86 return yards off of his five interceptions during his time with the Boilermakers.[4] He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round (42nd overall selection) of the 1958 NFL Draft.[3]

Career

Barnes made his NFL debut with the Bears on October 12, 1958, at the age of 23, in a 28–6 win over the San Francisco 49ers.[5] He was later traded to the New York Giants in 1961. He tied an NFL record in his first season with the Giants by intercepting a pass against the Dallas Cowboys and returning it 102 yards for a touchdown. The franchise went on to face the Green Bay Packers in the 1962 NFL Championship Game, having lost 37–0 to the same team in the previous year's title game. They lost again to Lombardi's Packers on a fiercely windy and cold day in Yankee Stadium. Barnes set up the only scoring for the Giants when he blocked a punt recovered by teammate Jim Collier in the end zone in a 16–7 loss.[6][7]

Barnes was known as an aggressive, physical player,[8] and is the Giants record holder for longest interception return after scoring on a 102-yard return against the Dallas Cowboys in 1961.[9]

After the 1964 season, the Giants traded him to the Cleveland Browns – his favorite team as a child[10] – for linebacker Mike Lucci and a 1966 third round draft pick which the Giants then traded to Detroit for quarterback Earl Morrall.[11] This trade further aggravated the demise of a once stellar Giants defense that had already lost standouts Sam Huff and Dick Modzelewski, who was also traded to the Browns and an integral component of their 1964 NFL championship team after the 1963 season.[2]

During his time with the Browns, Barnes was known for standing at the goalpost (then stationed at the goal line) and blocking field goal attempts. This practice was later outlawed in the NFL.[4]

Personal life

Barnes was married to Violet Ward Barnes until his death. Together, they had three children: Charissa, Djuna, and Tessa. He maintained residences in Yonkers, New York, and Joliet, Illinois.[2]

In November 1963, Barnes appeared as one of the impostors on the panel game show To Tell the Truth, claiming to be a sentinel at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Tom Poston was particularly chagrined at not having recognized Barnes, who fooled two of the four panelists.[1] After retiring from professional football in 1971, Barnes went on to work in the New York City area as a corporate special events planner.[2] He was elected to the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 1986,[12] and the Purdue University Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame in 2009.[13] In 2012, the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Mike Pettica ranked Barnes as the #63 player in Browns' history (counting only what players did playing for Cleveland).[14] The Professional Football Researchers Association named Barnes to the PRFA Hall of Very Good Class of 2013. [15]

Barnes died on April 29, 2022, at a hospital in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. He was 86, and suffered from an unspecified long illness prior to his death.[2][6]

References

  1. ^ a b To Tell the Truth, Monday, November 11, 1963 – YouTube (via Buzzr). Retrieved January 4, 2019
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Goldstein, Richard (May 4, 2022). "Erich Barnes, Star Defensive Back for the 1960s Giants, Dies at 86". The New York Times. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c "Erich Barnes Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c Douglas, Brett (April 19, 2020). "Draft Pick Countdown, No. 6: Erich Barnes, the Versatile Ballhawk". SI.com. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  5. ^ "Erich Barnes 1958 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
  6. ^ a b Eisen, Michael (May 3, 2022). "Giants mourn passing of former DB Erich Barnes". New York Giants. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
  7. ^ "December 30th, 1962 Championship – Green Bay Packers at New York Giants". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. December 30, 1962. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
  8. ^ Rich Passan, "Browns Rewind: Erich Barnes". Orange and Brown Report, May 19, 2008. http://cle.scout.com/2/755851.html Archived 2008-08-29 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ "Reed rumbles 108 yards for NFL record | Longest interception returns by team". Pro Football Hall of Fame. November 24, 2008. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  10. ^ Passan, ibid.
  11. ^ Mike Pettica, "Cleveland Browns' 100 best all-time players: No. 63, Erich Barnes", The Plain Dealer, October 26, 2012. http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2012/10/cleveland_browns_100_best_all-_1.html Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  12. ^ Indiana Football Hall of Fame, "Erich Barnes": http://www.indiana-football.org/?q=node/32 Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  13. ^ Purdue Athletics, "2009 Hall of Fame", February 9, 2009. http://www.purduesports.com/genrel/020909aaf.html Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  14. ^ Pettica, ibid.
  15. ^ "Professional Researchers Association Hall of Very Good Class of 2013". Archived from the original on January 4, 2017. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
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