Darian Barnes

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Darian Durrell Barnes (born February 28, 1980) is a former American football fullback who played in the NFL. He was born in Toms River, New Jersey and went to Toms River High School North, where he had a strong senior season. He started college at Rutgers but transferred to Hampton University, where he played for the Hampton Pirates.

Barnes went undrafted in 2002 but joined the New York Giants before moving to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he mainly played on special teams and earned a Super Bowl ring in XXXVII. His NFL career also included time with the Dallas Cowboys (2004), Miami Dolphins (2005–2006), New York Jets (2007), Buffalo Bills (2008), Detroit Lions (2008) and New Orleans Saints (2008). He finished his professional career with the Florida Tuskers in 2010. His career NFL stats include 5 rushing attempts for 10 yards, 16 receptions for 121 yards, and 1 receiving touchdown.

After playing, Barnes returned to coaching. He joined Toms River North as an assistant in 2013, served as interim head coach at Colts Neck High School in 2014, and was the head coach from 2015 to 2017, finishing with an 8-22 record. In 2020, he competed on the Food Network show Worst Cooks in America. He also created a comic book called National Triumph League. Barnes and his wife Rebecca have four daughters: Damara, Darren, Daylin and Draya.