Eric Barton (born September 29, 1977) is a former American football linebacker who played for twelve seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Maryland before he was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the fifth round of the 1999 NFL Draft. He played for the Raiders from 1999 to 2003, the New York Jets from 2004 to 2008, and the Cleveland Browns from 2009 to 2010. Early years Barton went to Thomas A. Edison High School (Fairfax County, Virginia) in Alexandria, Virginia. College career Barton attended the University of Maryland where he majored in criminology and criminal justice. Barton Earned All-American honors from the National Recruiting Advisor and an All-Atlantic Coast recognition from Blue Chip Illustrated Magazine and was rated 10th-best football player in Virginia by Super Prep Magazine as a senior at Edison High School in Alexandria, Virginia. He recorded more than 100 tackles as a sophomore, junior and senior at Maryland, which helped land him fourth on the career tackles list. He also led the ACC in solo tackles as junior and senior. He was an All-ACC first-team selection as senior and led conference in total tackles (159) and average tackles per game (14.5). Professional career Oakland Raiders Barton was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the fifth round (146th overall) of the 1999 NFL Draft. He saw action in all of his 16 games in the 1999 NFL season, making three starts and finishing with 29 tackles and two sacks. He recorded a sack in the first play of his first NFL start and finished with, a team-high, eight tackles in Week 15 vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He started and tallied 13 tackles at LB in Super Bowl XXXVII in a loss to the Buccaneers. He led the team for the ninth time on the season with a nine-tackle performance vs. the Kansas City Chiefs in the season finale. New York Jets Barton signed with the New York Jets as an unrestricted free agent in 2004. He registered nine or more tackles seven times in the 2004 NFL season, including an AFC Wild Card victory over the San Diego Chargers. He earned AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors as a result of nine tackles, one sack, one INT, two PD, one FF and one FR in a Week 15 win vs. the Seattle Seahawks. Barton led the defense with a career-high