Former Cowboys Running Back Marion Barber Dead At 38, Team Says

FRISCO, TX — Former Dallas Cowboys running back Marion Barber III has died at 38, the team announced Wednesday evening.

Police found Barber's body in his apartment during a welfare check around 2:40 p.m. Wednesday, a Frisco Police Department spokesperson confirmed to Patch. Police do not suspect foul play, and the Collin County Medical Examiner's Office has not yet determined a cause of death.

The Cowboys offered condolences to Barber's family and friends in a statement and said the organization was heartbroken with the news of Barber's death.

"Marion was an old-school, hard-nosed football player who ran with the will to win every down," the statement read. "He had a passion for the game and love for his coaches and teammates."

Barber, known for a punishing running style that earned him the nickname "Marion the Barbarian," spent six seasons with the Cowboys and one with the Chicago Bears in 2011.

Perhaps his most famous run gained only two yards. After being driven backward into the end zone during a 2007 game against the New England Patriots, Barber reversed course and ran the width of the field, brushing off several tacklers in the end zone before salvaging the short gain.

He is fourth on the Cowboys' all-time rushing touchdowns list with 47 and finished his NFL career with 53 rushing scores. He made the Pro Bowl in 2007, when he rushed for 975 yards and 10 touchdowns, a year after he rushed for a career-high 14 touchdowns.

The Cowboys drafted him out of Minnesota in fourth round of the 2005 NFL Draft. With the Golden Gophers, he teamed with Laurence Maroney to become the first college teammates to each run for 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons, accomplishing the feat over the 2003 and 2004 seasons.

Barber's father, Marion Barber Jr., played for Minnesota from 1977 to 1980 and was picked by the New York Jets in the second round in 1981. He played seven seasons for the Jets.

Barber had struggled with mental health issues after he retired from the NFL following his stint with Bears and was arrested and taken to a hospital for a mental health evaluation in 2014.

Former Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant, teammates with Barber during the 2010 season, alluded to Barber having issues in a tweet last year, saying he was "down and out bad."