en Barry Word

Rushing yards:	2,897
Average:	4.1
Receptions:	30
Receiving yards:	280
Total touchdowns:	16
	Stats at Pro Football Reference

Barry Word
No. 34, 23, 32
Position:	Running back
Personal information
Born:	January 17, 1964 (age 60); Long Island, Virginia, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:	225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High school:	Halifax County (VA)
College:	Virginia
NFL draft:	1986 / round: 3 / pick: 62
Career history
	New Orleans Saints (1987–1988); Dallas Cowboys (1988); Pittsburgh Steelers (1989); Kansas City Chiefs (1990–1992); Minnesota Vikings (1993); Arizona Cardinals (1994);
	* Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
	PFW NFL Comeback Player of the Year (1990); ACC Player of the Year (1985); First-team All-ACC (1985);
Career NFL statistics
Rushing yards:
Rushing yards:	2,897
Average:	4.1
Receptions:	30
Receiving yards:	280
Total touchdowns:	16
	Stats at Pro Football Reference

Barry Quentin Word (born July 17, 1964) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL).

College career

Word played college football at the University of Virginia. In 1985, he ran for 1224 yards, which is currently the fifth most rushing yards total put up by a Virginia Cavaliers running back. Also in 1985, Word was the Atlantic Coast Conference player of the year.

College statistics

Legend
Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	Games	Rushing				Receiving
Year	Team	GP	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
1982	Virginia	7	43	226	5.3	2	0	0	0.0	0
1983	Virginia	8	50	204	4.1	3	8	157	19.6	1
1984	Virginia	10	105	603	5.7	6	10	75	7.5	0
1985	Virginia	11	207	1,224	5.9	6	11	76	6.9	0
		36	405	2,257	5.6	17	29	308	10.6	1

Professional career

Barry Word was selected in the third round, 62nd overall, by the New Orleans Saints in the 1986 NFL draft.^[1] Shortly after being drafted, he and two other Virginia athletes were indicted on cocaine distribution charges. The Saints did not offer a contract to Word after his indictment but retained his football rights.^[2] Word pleaded guilty, but his willingness to cooperate and his limited involvement in the case meant he only received 5 months in prison.^[3] After Word's release from prison in March 1987, he signed a three-year contract with the Saints and ran for 133 yards as a halfback in his rookie year. In 1988, however, he fell to third-string running back for the Saints behind Rueben Mayes and Dalton Hilliard, two running backs drafted by the Saints the prior year. Unhappy with being shifted from running back to halfback, Word walked away from the Saints after two games in 1988. He then had unsuccessful attempts to join the Dallas Cowboys later in 1988 and with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1989.^[4] He was finally signed by the Kansas City Chiefs before the start of the 1990 season.

Word had a career year in 1990, rushing for 1015 yards on 204 carries, garnering NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award for his performance. He split carries with Christian Okoye during the 1990 season as well as the next two years. At the start of the 1994 season Word was traded to the Minnesota Vikings and he ran for 847 yards on 142 carries. He was signed by the Cardinals at the start of the 1994 season, but only played one game for them and did not have a rushing attempt. This was to be the last time he took the field in the NFL as he retired after the game. He has said that being able to retire early is not a bad thing, and said as much to Tiki Barber when Barber was set to retire concluding the 2006 season.^[5]

NFL career statistics

Legend
Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	Games		Rushing					Receiving
Year	Team	GP	GS	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
1987	NOR	12	1	36	133	3.7	20	2	6	54	9.0	17	0
1988	NOR	2	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0
1990	KAN	16	3	204	1,015	5.0	53	4	4	28	7.0	10	0
1991	KAN	16	3	160	684	4.3	37	4	2	13	6.5	8	0
1992	KAN	12	11	163	607	3.7	44	4	9	80	8.9	22	0
1993	MIN	13	8	142	458	3.2	14	2	9	105	11.7	27	0
1994	ARI	1	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0
		72	26	705	2,897	4.1	53	16	30	280	9.3	27	0

Playoffs

Year	Team	Games		Rushing					Receiving
Year	Team	GP	GS	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
1987	NOR	1	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0
1990	KAN	1	1	9	13	1.4	5	0	0	0	0.0	0	0
1991	KAN	2	2	48	180	3.8	23	1	1	8	8.0	8	0
1992	KAN	1	0	2	4	2.0	3	0	0	0	0.0	0	0
		5	3	59	197	3.3	23	1	1	8	8.0	8	0

Personal life

He now lives in Haymarket, Virginia and owns SpeedPro Imaging of Centreville, a wide-formating printing company.

References

^ "1986 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
^ "Barry Word, Now Getting 2nd Chance, Trying to be a Saint". Los Angeles Times. May 3, 1987.
^ "SPORTS PEOPLE; Virginia Star Pleads". The New York Times. July 30, 1986. Retrieved October 3, 2009.
^ Alan Eskew (October 16, 1990). "WORD FULL SPEED AHEAD IN DRIVE TO SUCCEED". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
^ "Barber has no regrets about hanging them up". Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved January 1, 2007.

[1] "1986 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 2, 2023.

[2] "Barry Word, Now Getting 2nd Chance, Trying to be a Saint". Los Angeles Times. May 3, 1987.

[3] "SPORTS PEOPLE; Virginia Star Pleads". The New York Times. July 30, 1986. Retrieved October 3, 2009.

[4] Alan Eskew (October 16, 1990). "WORD FULL SPEED AHEAD IN DRIVE TO SUCCEED". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.

[5] "Barber has no regrets about hanging them up". Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved January 1, 2007.

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