Stewart “Stew” Barber, a former Buffalo Bills offensive lineman who helped lead the team to back-to-back American Football League championships in 1964 and 1965, died June 11, 2025, at his home in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. He was 85 years old.

Barber passed away peacefully surrounded by his family, just three days before his 86th birthday. The Bills announced his death last Sunday, with private services scheduled to be held in East Aurora, New York, at a later date.

Born June 14, 1939, in Bradford, Pennsylvania, Barber was the son of Arthur Clair Barber and Jeanne Stewart Barber. He began playing football at an early age and became a standout athlete at Bradford Area High School, where he broke his father’s shot put record and received full scholarship offers in both football and basketball.

Barber chose to attend Penn State, where he starred as an offensive tackle and earned All-American honors as a senior. It was at Penn State where he met his future wife, Vicki Serwatka. The couple met in December and married in July, with Vicki spending their honeymoon in Evanston, Illinois, while Barber attended training camp.

Upon graduating from college in 1961, Barber faced a significant decision when both the Buffalo Bills and Dallas Cowboys drafted him. The Bills selected him in the fourth round of the AFL Draft, while the Cowboys chose him in the third round of the NFL Draft. Barber elected to join Buffalo, partly because it was closer to his Pennsylvania home.

Barber’s professional career began as an outside linebacker, where he recorded three interceptions as a rookie, including one returned for a touchdown. He later transitioned to offensive tackle, where he became one of the AFL’s premier linemen and helped protect quarterback Jack Kemp.

During his nine-season career with Buffalo from 1961 to 1969, Barber played in 112 consecutive games, missing only one contest due to injury. He earned five consecutive AFL All-Star selections from 1963 to 1968 and was named to the All-AFL First Team in both 1963 and 1964. His most significant achievements came as a member of the Bills’ championship teams that captured AFL titles in 1964 and 1965.

Barber retired following the 1969 season, one year before the AFL-NFL merger, meaning he never played in an NFL game. However, his contributions to the sport continued beyond his playing career.

After retiring from professional football, Barber briefly worked in private business before entering professional coaching with the World Football League in the mid-1970s. He later returned to the Bills organization as a college talent scout and eventually rose through the ranks to become assistant general manager and vice president, serving from 1979 to 1982.

Following his final retirement from the Bills in 1983, Barber returned to private business and eventually moved to Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, where he and Vicki built their dream home. The couple remained married for 63 years until his death.

Barber was remembered as a humble man with an incredible work ethic that he passed down to his children. Family members described him as a gentle giant and the greatest supporter to his five daughters. According to his obituary, his daughters knew not to change the television channel on Sundays and learned to hide dessert before their father could finish it all.

The family noted that Barber’s last words to anyone leaving him were always, “Watch out for the other guy.”

Barber is survived by his wife Vicki of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina; three daughters, Tracey Richter of East Aurora, New York, Jennifer Beall of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, and Alicia Barber of Goose Creek, South Carolina; four grandchildren and a sister. He was preceded in death by daughters Michelle and Rebekah Barber.

Fans and former teammates have paid tribute to Barber’s contributions to the Bills’ championship era. His legacy remains tied to one of the most successful periods in franchise history, when Buffalo dominated the AFL before the league’s merger with the NFL.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that memorial donations be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Funeral arrangements were handled by J. Henry Stuhr, Inc., Mount Pleasant Chapel.