TheSabre.com Fan Friday: Ronde Barber Set For NFL Hall Of Fame Induction

The NFL is set to induct the 2023 NFL Hall of Fame class in Canton on Saturday at noon. Among those to be enshrined is University of Virginia fan favorite Ronde Barber. He enters the Hall in his sixth year of eligibility.

Barber remains the only NFL player in history with more than 45 interceptions and 25 sacks in his career. He finished with 1,251 tackles, 47 interceptions, 28 sacks, 15 forced fumbles, and 14 touchdowns for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Selected in the third round of the 1997 NFL Draft, he spent his entire 16-year career with the Bucs. From 1998 until the end of his career, Barber did not miss a game as he started 224 consecutive games counting the playoffs.

Barber was selected as First-Team All-Pro three times (2001, 2004, 2005) and Second-Team All-Pro 2 times (2002, 2006). Tampa Bay placed him in its Ring of Honor, while the Virginia Cavaliers retired his No. 19 jersey. At UVA, he was named All-ACC three times and the ACC Rookie of the Year in 1994. He finished his career with 15 interceptions.

Among the highlights of his football journey, Barber returned an interception 92 yards for a touchdown in the Bucs’ 2003 NFC Championship win (plus a sack and a forced fumble). In his team’s Super Bowl XXXVII win, he had 5 tackles. A recent ESPN article recalled that INT with the headline ‘How Ronde Barber’s iconic pick-six helped spark a franchise and a Hall of Fame Induction’.

Here is that moment as recounted by Barber himself on the ‘All Things Covered’ show:

Also, check out these videos from NBC interviewing Barber at the 2023 Hall of Fame Game on Thursday, the Tampa Bay Bucs where Bruce Arians breaks down some key plays from Barber’s career, and Virginia Sports TV clip on playing at UVA: