Audio By Carbonatix
I’m with ya. Tired of seeing Marion Barber.
Watching him hop up and strut 10 yards down field to celebrate a four-yard run. Watching him dive into a pile for a 1/2-yard loss on 3rd-and-1. Watching him bounce inside runs to the outside.
The Barbarian long ago deteriorated into the Librarian. But, unfortunately, are the Cowboys stuck with their overpaid, underproducing running back?
Sounds like it.
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“I know certainly he’s got critics but I wouldn’t go that far in any way to say his time is done with the Cowboys,” owner Jerry Jones said on his weekly radio show on 105.3 The Fan yesterday.
Ah, the good ol’ days. When Barber was making the Pro Bowl – as a backup. When he was aggressively, pro-actively using his stiff-arm and wasn’t being tackled by his dreadlocks.
When he wasn’t the highest-paid running back in Dallas Cowboys’ history.
After he reached the Pro Bowl Barber signed a seven-year, $45 million contract. Since then he hasn’t rushed for 1,000 yards or, let’s be honest, done anything other than ice a couple of victories here and there.
Jones again paid too much too soon and the player – when the financial carrot was removed from the equation – got fat, happy and underwhelming. The Cowboys still owe Barber $14 million through the 2014 season. Ugh.
One of the things I’m looking forward to seeing the remainder of this lost season is more Felix Jones, more Tashard Choice (who has just 14 carries in ’10) and less no Barber. The Librarian is doubtful for Sunday’s game in Indy with a strained calf, so all may not be lost yet.
Just know this: Barber is averaging 3.1 yards per carry. Of NFL running backs with at least 100 carries, that ranks 32nd out of 33.
