Falcons' Dunn provides explosiveness

When the Jets take the field Monday against the Atlanta Falcons, the New York defense will be staring across the line of scrimmage at one of the most explosive offensive players in the league. But his name is not Michael Vick.

Although Vick has clearly become the face of the entire Falcons organization, and while he still possesses the ability to dominate on any given day, he isn't even the best offensive player on his own team.

That title goes to RB Warrick Dunn, an under-appreciated star who is currently on pace for his best season after nine years in the league.

While he has always been a good player, the arrival of coach Jim Mora Jr. has clearly allowed Dunn to take his game to the next level. Not only did he start all 16 games in a season for the first time in his career, but he also rushed for over 1,100 yards and finished with a career-high nine rushing touchdowns.

And so far this year, his second season under Mora looks to be even more impressive, as his current numbers project out to over 1,530 rushing yards.

So why do so many fans continue to overlook him?

I will admit it, I have always been a bit prejudiced against the smaller running backs, and was never really a believer in guys like Dunn. I was convinced their inability to stay healthy for an entire season, combined with their possible substitution in goal line situations, made them a very risky investment.

But the successes of guys like Tiki Barber of the Giants and Brain Westbrook of the Philadelphia Eagles have helped to change my tune. In this new age of speed turf and multi-dimensional running backs, the smaller guys have managed to put up numbers just as good as the bigger guys, if not better.

So even though Dunn has only seven catches, his speed and ability to catch the ball out of the backfield have made him the perfect fit for Atlanta's new offense.

And despite all of the hype that surrounds his quarterback, it has also made Dunn into Atlanta's ultimate weapon.

Bottom of the barrel

If fantasy football teaches us nothing else, it teaches us humility. That's because every week it forces us to dig through the garbage can that is the waiver wire, in search of replacements for our star players on bye weeks. This week the owners of any Panthers, Jaguars, Buccaneers or Patriots will be doing just that.

So take it from a guy who spends a lot of time picking through waiver wire garbage, here are a few tidbits that may make that search a little quicker.

• With Tennessee QB Steve McNair nursing a back injury, the Titans will start Billy Volek this afternoon against the Cardinals in Arizona. The talented Volek had some very impressive games as a starter last season including back-to-back games of over 425 passing yards and four touchdowns.

• Also don't forget about Volek's counterpart in that game, because even though coach Dennis Green has yet to make it official, the recent performance of Josh McCown has now made him logical choice to start over Kurt Warner. With the likes of Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin to throw to, you could do much worse than starting McCown against the Titans.

The Tennessee defense has already allowed a league-high 13 touchdown passes, and rookie CB Pacman Jones has been getting beaten like a drum.

• When it comes to running backs, keep an eye on whoever is named the Dallas starter in Seattle. With RB Julius Jones banged-up and not expected to play, coach Bill Parcells is expected to pick between rookies Tyson Thompson and Marion Barber, with the edge going to Barber because of a mental error Thompson made last week in pass protection.

But beware, because regardless of who starts, veteran Anthony Thomas may still get all the goal line carries today against the Seahawks.

• For all of you Tom Brady owners out there, do yourself (and your team) a big favor this week and resist the temptation to start QB Aaron Brooks of the Saints today, no matter how bleak your quarterback situation may be. Regardless of how easy today's match-up against the Rams may look, avoid him at all costs.

• Instead of Brooks, take a chance of Kelly Holcomb, the new starter for the Buffalo Bills. He has played well so far in place of rookie J.P. Losman, making much quicker reads and getting the ball to the right person at the right time. He will be going up against the Oakland Raiders this afternoon, owners of the fifth-worst pass defense in the league.

• With so many valuable running backs on byes this week (Fred Taylor, Corey Dillon, Stephen Davis, Cadillac Williams), owners may be forced into starting a platoon running back like Aaron Stecker or Antowain Smith of the Saints. Stecker is the much more talented and versatile player, but Smith also had 88 rushing yards and two touchdowns last week against the Falcons.

• For you poor souls forced into starting San Francisco RB Kevan Barlow on a regular basis, you might want to stay away from him this week. Aside from the impressive play of rookie back-up Frank Gore, and Barlow's inevitable demotion to second string, they go up against the Washington Redskins and their hard-hitting defense this week.

• Ditto for RB Rudi Johnson of the Bengals, who will face the Pittsburgh Steelers in a pivotal division match-up today. Johnson has only found the end zone twice this season, and the Steelers allow just a meager 3.4 rushing yards per carry.

• Last but not least, if it's your star wide receiver that you need to replace, keep an eye on Joe Jurevicius of the Seahawks, Brandon Jones of the Titans, and Doug Gabriel of the Raiders. Jurevicius is now the first option in the passing game and has responded with scores in consecutive weeks, and he should already be gone in most leagues.

But you may still have time to grab the rookie Jones, who will see a major increase in his workload with starter Drew Bennett lost to a thumb injury. The same goes for Gabriel, who will likely step into a starting role to the injury to WR Randy Moss.