Earnest Byner Madden Career 1992-1998 - Peak 95 OVR

Earnest Byner was born on September 15, 1962, in Milledgeville, Georgia, and attended Baldwin High School there. He gained 2,049 yards on 378 carries at East Carolina and was taken by the Cleveland Browns in the tenth round of the 1984 NFL draft, 280th overall. He rushed for 1,002 yards in 1985, when he and Kevin Mack both passed 1,000. In the AFC Championship Game at Denver on January 17, 1988, he fumbled at the Broncos' goal line in the final minutes after gaining 67 rushing yards and catching seven passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns.

Cleveland traded Byner to Washington for Mike Oliphant before the 1989 season. He rushed for 1,219 yards in 1990 and made the Pro Bowl, then ran for 1,048 yards in 1991, made it again and was named a second-team Associated Press All-Pro; Madden NFL 92 carried that season at a calculated 86 overall. He caught a touchdown pass in Washington's 37-24 win over Buffalo in Super Bowl XXVI, and Madden NFL 93 listed his 1992 season at a calculated 95.

Byner returned to Cleveland in 1994 and 1995, a season Madden NFL 96 rated at a calculated 63, and finished with the Baltimore Ravens in 1996 and 1997, the first of those seasons listed at 45 by Madden NFL 97. He retired with 8,261 rushing yards, 56 rushing touchdowns and 512 receptions for 4,605 yards. In 2000 he became the first player inducted into the Ravens' Ring of Honor.