Friday, Oct. 26, 2001

Running backs on the brain

Thoughts on possible up-and-comers Huntley, Brookins and Canidate among others

By Dan Arkush, Executive editor

While I have no concrete answers to the excellent question Andy posed, I do have all kinds of scattered fantasy-related thoughts on some possible up-and-coming running backs that might come in handy.

To wit:

• For better or worse, the Panthers’ ground game looks like it will be primarily revolving around Richard Huntley for the rest of the season. With Tshimanga Biakabutuka’s season coming to an end after breaking his foot in the loss to Washington last Sunday, the RB onus now falls on Huntley, who has started just three games in his NFL career. A fourth-round pick by the Falcons in 1996, Huntley played behind Jamal Anderson for a year in Atlanta before sitting out the ’97 season. He then went on to Pittsburgh, where he spent three seasons backing up Jerome Bettis. His best season with the Steelers was in ’99, when he showed some flashes, rushing for 567 yards and five TDs and catching 27 passes for 253 yards and three TDs. It should be noted that most of that production came as a third-down back. Going into this Sunday’s game vs. the Jets, Huntley has carried the ball just 12 times for 27 yards this season, but he has thought for some time now that he could be effective if just given the opportunity. Well, he has it now, even though his efforts could be hampered by the loss of ORG Kevin Donnalley, a solid run blocker who is also out for the season after tearing his ACL vs. the Skins. There is one factor that should definitely help Huntley this Sunday: He’s going up against a simply awful Jets run defense that made Trung Canidate look like MVP material last Sunday.

• Keep an eye on Ravens RB Jason Brookins, who is expected to start this Sunday vs. Jacksonville in place of Terry Allen, who injured his ankle early in the loss to Cleveland. The Ravens’ attempt to land Denver’s Olandis Gary before the trading deadline expired earlier this week was an outright admission that they definitely felt they could benefit from some new blood. But with that deal having fallen through, Baltimore would be best-served relying more on Brookins, who hasn’t done that bad a job at all when he’s had the chance. Granted, Brookins could use a little more outside speed, but he’s definitely a better alternative than Allen, who breaks tackles about as often as Dennis Miller says something funny on "Monday Night Football," which ain’t a lot. Whoever is running for the Ravens this Sunday will benefit from the return of OLG Edwin Mulitalo, who is expected back in the lineup after missing the last two games with a knee injury. The Ravens run behind Mulitalo on about 70 percent of their running plays.

• Even after Rams RB Marshall Faulk returns to duty (my guess at the moment is that he will miss his second straight game this Sunday vs. the Saints), the possible fantasy contributions of Canidate could continue to be considerable. Once Faulk is totally healthy again, the game plan will call for Canidate to get as many as 10 touches a game in the hopes of giving Faulk more of a breather. With his confidence soaring following his breakout game vs. the Jets, Canidate now figures as a bona fide scoring threat just about every time he touches the ball. Even in limited duty, he could still put up some impressive fantasy numbers on a weekly basis from here on out.

• Two rookie RBs whose fantasy stock is steadily rising are Chicago’s Anthony Thomas and Philadelphia’s Correll Buckhalter. In the Windy City, it looks like the "A-Train" has blown past James Allen as the Bears’ starting RB following his gargantuan effort vs. the Bengals last Sunday. While everyone knew Thomas had a lot of power, his speed vs. the Bengals was a real eye-opener that should keep him in the starting lineup. The only drawback is a sore right toe that could limit his effectiveness. In the case of Buckhalter, it looks as though the third-round pick out of Nebraska might have passed by Duce Staley, who continues to be bothered by injury problems. Buckhalter is a plugger, pure and simple. He’s hardly fancy, but he’ll grow on you. He certainly has grown on the Eagles, it would appear.

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