Earnest Byner
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| Position: | Running back | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Date of birth: | September 15, 1962 | ||||||||
| Place of birth: | Milledgeville, Georgia | ||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 215 lb (98 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | East Carolina | ||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 1984 / Round: 10 / Pick: 280 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Rushing yards: | 8,261 |
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| Average: | 3.9 |
| Touchdowns: | 56 |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Earnest Alexander Byner (born September 15, 1962) is a former American football running back in the National Football League.
Byner was a fullback at East Carolina University from 1980 to 1983 where he gained 2,049 yards on 378 carries. Byner was inducted into the East Carolina Hall of Fame in 1998. He is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.
Byner was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the tenth round (280th pick overall) of the 1984 NFL Draft. He played for the Browns (1984–1988; 1994–1995), Washington Redskins (1989–1993) and the Baltimore Ravens (1996–1997). He finished his 14-year NFL career ranked 16th on the NFL's all-time rushing list with 8,261 yards on 2,095 carries, with 56 touchdowns. He also caught 512 passes for 4,605 yards and 15 touchdowns, returned 33 kickoffs for 576 yards, and scored a touchdown on a recovered fumble, totaling 13,442 all-purpose yards and 72 career scores. In addition to his #16 rushing yards ranking at the time of his retirement, Byner finished his career within the NFL's top 50 all-time leaders in rushing attempts, rushing touchdowns, and total yards.
A productive, reliable running back that could rush, block and catch the ball out of the backfield, Byner was a popular player in Cleveland. Paired with power runner Kevin Mack in the Brown backfield, the pair both gained over 1,000 yards in the 1985 season. Byner helped the Browns reach the AFC Championship game in both 1986 and 1987 seasons, meeting the Denver Broncos in both games.
In the 1987 AFC Championship game he was instrumental in a Browns comeback from a 21–3 deficit to place the Browns in position to win the game. With the score tied at 31 midway through the 4th quarter, the Broncos scored a go-ahead touchdown to make the score 38–31 with six minutes to play. In the ensuing Cleveland drive the Browns worked the ball down the field to reach the Denver 8 yard line with a little over a minute left in the game. On the next play Byner took the Kosar handoff to run off left tackle. Byner powered past the Bronco line and looked sure to score a game tying touchdown when Bronco defensive back Jeremiah Castille managed to strip him of the ball. The play, now known simply as The Fumble, became the play for which Byner is best remembered. The fumble marred an otherwise impressive performance, as he finished the game with 67 rushing yards, seven receptions for 120 yards, and two touchdowns.
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