Mark Barron (born October 27, 1989) is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, where he was twice recognized as an All-American, and was a member of two BCS National Championship teams. He was selected as a strong safety by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first round of the 2012 NFL draft, where he played for two and a half seasons before being traded to the St. Louis Rams in 2014, where he moved to the linebacker position. He also played for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos.
Barron was born in Mobile, Alabama. He attended St. Paul's Episcopal School in Mobile, where he played for the St. Paul's Saints high school football team, under the coaching of Eddie Guth. He played multiple positions, including running back, wide receiver, and linebacker from 2004 through 2007. Barron had 785 rushing yards as a junior on 78 carries and added 368 receiving yards on 23 catches, scoring a total of 12 touchdowns. As a senior, Barron was the MVP of the 2007 Class 5A state championship game after rushing for 1,094 yards on 122 carries with 15 touchdowns in his senior season. He was also named a first-team Alabama Sports Writers Association All-State selection in Class 5A as a senior.
In addition to playing football, Barron also competed in track & field, where he won multiple 5A individual state titles in events ranging from the shot put to the long jump during the 2008 season. He recorded a career-best throw of 17.09 meters in the shot put at the Mobile Challenge of Champions, where he placed first. He captured four state titles at the 2008 AHSAA 4A-6A Championships, winning the triple jump, with a jump of 14.08 meters, long jump, with a leap of 6.74 meters, discus throw, with a throw of 44.03 meters, and in shot put, with a throw of 16.76 meters. He also recorded a personal-best time of 11.39 seconds in the 100 meters.
Barron was ranked as a five-star prospect and the number one weakside linebacker in the Class of 2008 by Scout.com. He was also ranked as the fifth best player in the state of Alabama and the 55th best player in the nation in the Class of 2008 by Rivals.com. Barron chose to play at Alabama over offers from Auburn, LSU, Florida, Florida State, and Tennessee among others.
Barron accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Alabama, where he played for coach Nick Saban's Alabama Crimson Tide football team from 2008 to 2011.
As a true freshman for the 2008 Crimson Tide, he made his first appearance on kick-off coverage against Clemson. He had his first career tackle early in the game on a crushing blow of Jacoby Ford on a kickoff return. On September 20, against Arkansas, he recorded his first collegiate sack. Barron played in all of Alabama's 14 games, recording 18 tackles and a sack.
During his sophomore season in 2009, Barron took over as a starter at safety and was second on Alabama's national championship team with 74 tackles and a Southeastern Conference-leading seven interceptions and a touchdown. On October 10, against Ole Miss, he had his first career collegiate reception, which went for seven yards. On October 17, against South Carolina, he had a 77-yard pick six in the 20–6 victory. On November 14, against Mississippi State, he had two interceptions in the 31–3 victory. Barron finished the regular season tied for third in the nation with seven interceptions and tied for sixth in the nation with 17 passes defended. In the SEC Championship against Florida, he had seven total tackles in the 32–13 victory. In the BCS National Championship against Texas, he had six total tackles and one pass defended in the 37–21 victory. He was recognized as a first-team All-SEC selection and third-team All-American at safety.
Barron was the Crimson Tide's only returning starter in the defensive secondary for the 2010 season. He finished the season with 77 tackles, three interceptions, nine passes defended, and one forced fumble. He was named an FWAA All-American.
In 2011, Barron was again a first-team All-SEC selection and was recognized as a unanimous first-team All-American. In the BCS National Championship against LSU, he had two total tackles and a sack in the 21–0 victory.
Barron attended the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, but did not perform drills as he was still recovering after recently undergoing sports hernia surgery. On March 7, 2012, Barron attended Alabama's pro day and performed the majority of drills, but opted to skip the short shuttle, three-cone drill, and bench press. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Barron was projected to be a first round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked as the best strong safety prospect by DraftScout.com and was ranked as the top safety by NFL analysts Mike Mayock, Charley Casserly, and The Sporting News.
Barron was selected in the first round with the seventh overall pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2012 NFL draft. He is the highest selected Alabama defensive back in school history, surpassing Antonio Langham, who was chosen ninth overall in 1994 by the Cleveland Browns.
"Boy, is this a solid pick. I love this kid because his floor and ceiling are the same thing. His ceiling is to be a Pro Bowl safety; his floor is to be a Pro Bowl safety. That's how good this young man is. This is going to be a good football team next year."-Mike Mayock, former NFL safety and current NFL Network analyst
On July 20, 2012, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed Barron to a four-year, $14.56 million contract with a $9.00 million signing bonus and no offset language. Barron was expected to be the starting strong safety his rookie season. In Week 3 of the preseason, Barron intercepted Tom Brady and ran the pick back for his first career NFL touchdown.
He made his professional regular season debut in the Buccaneers' season-opening victory over the Carolina Panthers and finished the game with three solo tackles and two pass deflections. The next game, Barron made a season-high ten combined tackles and two pass deflections in a 41–34 loss at the New York Giants. In Week 4, Barron made eight combined tackles and forced his first career fumble in a 24–22 loss to the Washington Redskins. On October 14, 2012, he collected eight total tackles, a pass deflection, and intercepted Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Brady Quinn for the first of his career, as the Buccaneers routed the Chiefs 38–10. During a Week 14 loss to the New Orleans Saints, Barron racked up a season-high eight solo tackles and two assisted tackles. Barron started the regular season strong with 42 tackles, seven passes defended and one interception in his first six NFL games, but trailed off towards the end of the season before finishing with 89 tackles. He started all 16 games and made the Pro Football Writers Association All-Rookie team, even though the team was the NFL's worst pass defense. He finished his first year under new head coach Greg Schiano with 71 solo tackles, 17 assisted tackles, 10 pass deflections, an interception, and a forced fumble.
Barron returned as the Buccaneers' strong safety to begin his second season under coach Greg Schiano. In the season opener, he made four combined tackles and a pass deflection in an 18–17 loss to the New York Jets. The following week, Barron collected a career-high 13 combined tackles, of which ten were solo, a pass deflection, and made his first career sack on Drew Brees during a 16–14 loss to the New Orleans Saints. During a Week 3 loss to the New England Patriots, Barron finished with 11 combined tackles, was credited with half a sack, and intercepted Tom Brady for his first pick of the season. On November 3, 2013, he racked up ten solo tackles, an assisted tackle, two pass deflections, and intercepted a pass from Russell Wilson in the Buccaneers' 27–24 overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks. On December 8, 2013, Barron made four solo tackles and made his first career solo sack on Buffalo Bills quarterback EJ Manuel. He missed the last two games of the regular season after suffering a hamstring injury. Barron finished his second season with 88 combined tackles, six pass deflections, two sacks, and two interceptions while starting in 14 games. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished their season with a 4–12 record and head coach Greg Schiano was fired after the season.