Buster Barnett is a career quality starter β a tight end whose body of work places Barnett in the top half of all players at the position historically. The Knox model values sustained contribution over flash, and Barnett's career arc reflects exactly that kind of reliable professional-grade performance.
Buster Barnett
A tight end with a above-average career β the kind of consistent contributor every roster needs. Solid availability (exceptional availability β almost never missed time) added to their value.
Career Value Β· VORP
VORP 30 Β· #2662 Β· Role PlayerWorth 30 points of value above a freely-available replacement tight end β top 58% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 4 of 4 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +7.5 on average.See board β
Seasons above replacement
4 cleared
Beat replacement (adds to VORP) Below it β adds 0, never a debit
46
Replacement
the KC-H bar
β
4
Seasons over
cleared the bar
Γ
+7.5
Avg surplus
peak +9
4 seasons Γ ~7.5 surplus β VORP 30
Combined Season Grid
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at onceβno tab hopping.
2 grids split in one view
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Receiving | Defense | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tgt | Rec | Yds | TD | Ctch% | Y/R | Y/Tgt | AirYd/T | 1D | Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | |||||
| 1981 | β | BUF | 16 | β | β | 4 | 36 | 1 | β | 9.0 | β | β | β | 0 | 0 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | β | 1 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1982 | β | BUF | 9 | β | β | 4 | 39 | 0 | β | 9.8 | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1983 | β | BUF | 15 | β | β | 10 | 94 | 0 | β | 9.4 | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1984 | β | BUF | 16 | β | β | 8 | 67 | 0 | β | 8.4 | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| Career | β | 56 | β | 0 | 26 | 236 | 1 | β | 9.1 | β | β | β | 0 | 0 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | β | β | |
Receiving
Defense
KV-H Anatomy
KV-H 50 Β· SolidA solid career by KV-H: a remarkably steady profile that scores 50 of 100, era-normalized against rec yds/g peers across 4 scored seasons, with a short career trimming the score.
53
Sustained
career value
Γ.6
54
Peak
best 3 seasons
Γ.4
Γ0.93
Longevity
career length
Blend 53.4 Γ longevity 0.93 = KV-H 50Β· confidence 100%
What builds the career mark of 53
On-field 33.6
Availability 19.4
On-field production Staying available
Season-by-season quality (era-relative rec yds/g)
1981bestavg 541984
All-Time Standing
how this career measures against the all-time greats at the position2
Depth
of 100
Reached 2% of the all-time Receptions leader β a rotational/depth all-time profile at the position.
2% of the all-time Receptions leader2
0 categories β₯25% of the all-time leader0
A 0β100 scale where 100 = matched the all-time leaderat this position. Built only from visible encyclopedia data β career production vs. the all-time leader, plus efficiency (EPA) and comparable-player confidence β so it's a transparent context score, not a subjective rating. Tiers: Elite β₯ 85 Β· Strong β₯ 65 Β· Solid β₯ 45 Β· Depth < 45. Comparable-player confidence: 89%.
Career Aging Trajectory
vs. position group average Β· KV-H basisAmber = this player (normalized to own peak). Indigo = average tight ends aging curve. Group peak age: 25. Source: StatVault KV-H era (1999+).
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Jackson State University), but no parsed college box-score table is present in this profile artifact. The section stays here so every profile has a consistent college-stats landing point without fabricating unavailable rows.
Reference Graph
Career teammates and draft class, derived from year-by-year rosters β every name is linked.
Top Teammates
1981 Draft ClassΒ· this player went #299
Franchise Succession
the room, before and afterBuster inherited the Buffalo Bills TE room from Mark Brammer (1980β1984), and handed it to Pete Metzelaars (1985β1994).
Similar Players
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0β100%).
Movementderived from season history
- 1984final season
Last recorded season with BUF
- 1981draft
Drafted by BUF β Round 11, Pick 299
Athletic & Unique Profile
verified measurements and curated source-tagged facts6'5" / 228 lb
Frame
Knox
StatVault's proprietary player intelligence, informed by full career data. How Knox works β
Historical Knox Β· KV-H
Era-normalized career quality β z-scored against 4-season peers. See all β
50
peak 54
Season Report CardsΒ· KV-H era-normalized per season
C+1981
C+1982
C+1983
C+1984
Availability
Career durability β games played vs. scheduled, across 4 seasons.
98%
1981
Era Translator
Rec Yds translated to the 2025NFL β each season's standing among its own-era peers, projected onto 2025's scoring environment. Modern-era (1999+) coverage.
| Season | Actual Rec Yds | Rec Yds/G | β 2025 Rec Yds | β 2025 /G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 36 | 2.3 | 210+174 | 12.4 |
| 1982 | 39 | 4.3 | 264+225 | 15.5 |
| 1983 | 94 | 6.3 | 333+239 | 19.6 |
| 1984 | 67 | 4.2 | 272+205 | 16 |
Data: nflverse:draft_picks, nflverse:players, wikipedia:season-stats (CC-BY-SA, facts-only), nfl.com:official-stats (facts-only reference), nfl.com:official-stats (games-played, facts-only reference) Β· multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle Β· updated 6/18/2026
Career Value Β· VORP
30 career value over replacement β #2662 all-time of 4,642. 7.5/season above a replacement-level TE.
Draft OutcomeSteal β
Pick #299 (Rd 11) Β· BUF Β· 1981 Β· +42 vs expected KV-H
50actual
8 expected Β· Ξ+42
Fan Rating
Rate Buster Barnett β All-Time
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