Gary Barnidge is the most interesting man in the NFL

By Will Gibson

Cleveland Browns tight end Gary Barnidge has emerged as one of the NFL’s top pass catchers in 2015. His 40 receptions are tied for most among tight ends with New England Patriots Pro Bowler Rob Gronkowski and Cleveland Heights native Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs. Barnidge’s 567 receiving yards are second only to Gronkowski among tight ends, and his six touchdown receptions tie him with Cincinnati’s Tyler Eifert for second most at the position behind Gronk.

Barnidge’s play on the field has been superb. A profile on him by The MMQB’s Emily Kaplan, however, reveals that there’s more to the man than catching touchdowns with his hands and legs alike.

The NFL has made strides to expand its international presence through games in London, and NFL Europe before that. Barnidge’s AFWB hasn’t received much publicity — this MMQB story was the first time I’d heard of it — but he is doing as much as anyone to spread the game worldwide. AFWB has hosted camps in China, Brazil, and Turkey. The attendance increased each time, from 400 to 800 to 1,200. Seventeen different NFL players have participated in the trips, including Marshawn Lynch, Steve Smith, and DeAngelo Williams. (Browns players Alex Mack, Barkevious Mingo, and Johnson Bademosi have also participated, as well as former Brown Jordan Cameron.)

AFWB’s mission, per its website:

Beyond taking American football beyond American borders, Barnidge has another love: movies. He has his own movie review website, Movie Game Plan. He created the site when he was a rookie with the Carolina Panthers, and hopes to keep it going more seriously after he retires. He tweets out movie trivia questions and invites the winners to meet him during the week.

For all of his off-field interests, the charitable work and film reviews and WWE dates and such, one thing that Barnidge cannot shake is his less than graceful appearance on the field. Some of his teammates had some fun describing how he moves between the lines.

He may not be able to turn his own head, but Barnidge has turned those of NFL spectators this season. He’ll get a chance to impress a national audience Thursday when the Browns play the Bengals.

More from Waiting For Next Year: