Ronde Barber: “I Don’t Think Everybody Knew How Good I Was”

(EDITOR’S NOTE: To access the Ronde Barber interview, click on the following link: Megaphone: A Modern Podcasting Platform)

Before Brett Favre was inducted into the Pro Football of Fame in 2016 he went on the Talk of Fame Network and admitted that, contrary to popular belief, Canton wasn’t that big a deal for him … because playing in the NFL 20 seasons was.

“My career doesn’t have to be capped with the Hall of Fame,” he said.

But it was. Favre was a first-ballot choice in 2016.

Seven years later, Tampa Bay cornerback Ronde Barber joined the Hall’s Class of 2023 on his third try as a finalist and his sixth year of modern-era eligibility. The fourth member of the 2002 Bucs’ defense to be enshrined (Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks and John Lynch are the others), Barber conceded that, contrary to Favre, he cherished his election.

Now, let’s be clear: He enjoyed playing pro football as much as Favre. And, like Favre, he played … and played … and played. Barber didn’t miss a game in his last 14 seasons and set an NFL durability record for defensive backs. Unlike Favre, however, he believed his election to Canton was more than meaningful.

It was the exclamation point to his 15-year career.

“I would say (it’s) very important,” Barber said on the latest “Eye Test for Two” podcast. “For one particular reason: A guy like Brett Favre has universal respect and love from the game. Those kinds of guys, without question, everybody knows how good they are. 

“For me, I don’t think everybody knew how good I was. (People felt I) was a system guy; (that) anybody could do it. It hurts when you go back and look at what I accomplished … the totality of what I accomplished in my career … and then people still have doubts as to whether I was a really good football player.

“(They’d say) ‘He’s OK. He had a fine career.’ No, I had a really impressive career. The numbers speak for themselves. The durability speaks for itself. The number of big plays should be screaming at you, and yet people still didn’t want to believe it.

“So the Hall of Fame for me is not verification, it’s not justification. It’s a feather in my cap that says, basically, that all you who judged me unfairly were wrong.”

As Barber’s said, the resume speaks for itself. He was a five-time All-Pro, five-time Pro Bowler and an all-decade choice. He had 47 career interceptions, 28 quarterback sacks and 14 TDs. He didn’t miss a game in his last 14 seasons, set a league record for most consecutive starts by a defensive back (224, if you include the playoffs) and is the only player in NFL history to produce 45 or more interceptions and 25 or more sacks.

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Oh, he won a Super Bowl ring, too. So he checked all the boxes for Canton.

Except there’s something more. Something like 1,500 tackles, according to the Tampa Bay Bucs. Barber made that many in 15 NFL seasons, a figure so astounding that it was that one – not the 14 touchdowns – that Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin mentioned to him after Barber’s election.

“He said, ‘I was just reflecting on your career and, you were around the ball a lot.’ “ Barber recalled. “ ‘But 1,500 tackles? The 1,500 tackles, man, that is unprecedented for some linebackers.’ To make that a reality of my game for 15 years, that’s impossible.

“The touchdowns are awesome and, to be honest with you, touchdowns were because I was a very good technician and was always finding ways to get around the football. I scored six of them on fumbles. You don’t score touchdowns on fumbles unless you run into the ball or try to get to the football, which I always did.

“I tell these guys now that good things happen when you don’t stop running to the football. It’s going to be on the ground. I was fortunate. It wasn’t by accident. You don’t score that many touchdowns by accident. I’m definitely proud of that.”