Warrick Dunn

Warrick Dunn calls the last four years the best ones of his life. Even though he has had nobody to share them with. It has been like this for Dunn, Florida State's star tailback: One night he is a standout in a football game televised nationwide; the next day he is in a courtroom in East Baton Rouge Parish, La., testifying at the sentencing hearing of one of the two men convicted of murdering police officer Betty Smothers, his mother....

A massive cluster of offensive linemen, playfully nudging each other like elephants in a herd, occupied a corner of the Buccaneers' locker room yesterday afternoon. Some Tampa Bay players chose to carefully navigate around the porcine pack. Not Warrick Dunn. The 5-foot-8, 180-pound running back strode into the behemoths' midst en route to his locker. The bumping bellies swung sideways, like barroom doors, to make a path. "He is a tough little guy," said Bucs offensive lineman Frank Middleton, "a real tough little guy. " The Eagles figure to find that out in Sunday's NFC wild-card game against Tampa Bay. The shifty running back from Florida State is as large a weapon in the Bucs' run-first attack as Donovan McNabb is for Philadelphia.

It could have been completely different. Duce Staley knows that. There was nothing secret about it. If Warrick Dunn had chosen Philadelphia back in March, Staley likely would have played somewhere else this season. Brian Westbrook probably wouldn't have been the Eagles' third-round pick, since Dunn would have filled his role. Maybe the Eagles would have brought in Dorsey Levens to replace Correll Buckhalter, maybe not. It could have been different, but it isn't. Staley, who was named the Eagles' offensive MVP by his teammates last week, doesn't dwell on it. "I understood what went on with Warrick," Staley said.

Thumbs up To former running back Warrick Dunn, who has joined the Falcons as a minority owner. Dunn, one of the game's finest men, played for the Falcons from 2002-07. He was the '04 winner of the NFL's Walter Payton Man of the Year award for his longtime community service, which includes his Homes for the Holidays program. Dunn has helped 91 single parents and their children buy their first home. Thumbs down To Redskins owner Dan Snyder for his rapid-fire hiring of former Bucs and Raiders executive Bruce Allen as his new football operations vice president.

The Dallas Cowboys' seven-month courtship of Ryan Leaf ended yesterday when the disappointing quarterback signed a three-year, $2 million contract. Team owner Jerry Jones said that Leaf, who worked out in Dallas on Thursday, was interested in making the most of the opportunity created by a hamstring injury to starter Quincy Carter. Leaf will be in uniform for Monday night's game against Washington. Drafted No. 2 overall by San Diego in 1998, he will join the Cowboys as the No. 3 quarterback.

Star running back Warrick Dunn agreed to a six-year, $24 million deal with the Atlanta Falcons last night, the Orlando Sentinel reported. Dunn, who was wooed by the Eagles last weekend, will get a signing bonus of more than $6.5 million, the paper said. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the only team Dunn had played for in his five pro seasons, were given a chance to match the Falcons' offer but declined. The Bucs also released cornerback Donnie Abraham, the team's all-time leader with 30 interceptions, and he now is now free to sign with any team.

Bernadette Parker figured she would need a second job to get furniture for the new house she was buying in Baton Rouge, La., with help from Habitat for Humanity. Thanks to Tampa Bay running back Warrick Dunn, that won't be necessary. Dunn surprised Parker and two other single mothers Tuesday by filling their new houses with new furniture and appliances. Dunn's mother, Baton Rouge police Cpl. Betty Smothers, often juggled several jobs to support her family. She was shot to death in 1993 while working an off-duty security job. She was never able to afford a house.

Most people hear Warrick Dunn's story and say he's a hero. Dunn says he merely did what any other person in his situation would have, had they been similarly prepared. Four years ago, just before he was to begin a record-setting football career at Florida State, he lost his mother to murder. A police officer in Baton Rouge, La., she was gunned down while working her off-duty job as a payroll guard. She left behind six children, ranging in age from 18 to 9. Warrick was the oldest.

As he walked off the field and through the tunnel to the locker room, with mobs of revelers screaming his name, Hugh Douglas barely smiled. The man whose mouth usually runs a mile a minute didn't say a word. He didn't offer any well-earned trash talk, as teammate Brian Dawkins did, screaming, "What about this defense?" as he ran off the field. Douglas silently walked through the tunnel, pumped his fist twice to the masses above and continued up the ramp. It was an interestingly subdued reaction for a man whose mouth is likely still yapping in his sleep, who celebrates each sack with a dance to a rhythm only in his head, and who used one of those crushers to single-handedly swing the momentum to the Eagles' side in Sunday's 21-3 playoff victory against Tampa Bay. "Right now, we won the game, true enough, but it's not over," Douglas said.

With deafening silence from one prospective free agent, the Eagles began courting another yesterday. Safety Blaine Bishop, who has spent his entire nine-year career with the Houston Oilers and Tennessee Titans, arrived in Philadelphia yesterday. Bishop, 31, started his visit with a physical examination. He'll tour the NovaCare Complex and meet with the coaches today. Another safety the Eagles were looking at, Brock Marion, re-signed with Miami over the weekend. Bishop, who missed a chunk of the 2001 season with a foot injury, is the leading candidate to replace strong safety Damon Moore, who blew out his knee in the NFC championship game and whose contract expired.

Thumbs up To former running back Warrick Dunn, who has joined the Falcons as a minority owner. Dunn, one of the game's finest men, played for the Falcons from 2002-07. He was the '04 winner of the NFL's Walter Payton Man of the Year award for his longtime community service, which includes his Homes for the Holidays program. Dunn has helped 91 single parents and their children buy their first home. Thumbs down To Redskins owner Dan Snyder for his rapid-fire hiring of former Bucs and Raiders executive Bruce Allen as his new football operations vice president.

As if they didn't have enough troubles, the Atlanta Falcons revealed that running back Warrick Dunn will miss 3 to 4 weeks after having back surgery. Dunn, who rushed for a team-high 1,140 yards last year, hurt his back during offseason workouts and had the surgery on Saturday. The team held off revealing the news until yesterday while it dealt with the federal indictment of quarterback Michael Vick on charges related to dogfighting. Vick, indicted last week, was barred from training camp by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell while the league looks into possible violations of its new personal conduct policy.

One is a compact 180 pounds, ready to turn the corner at the slightest opening. The other pounds teams like a sledgehammer. It's the two-headed halfback system employed by the Atlanta Falcons and one of the reasons they led the NFL in rushing this season, averaging 167 yards per game. Of course it also doesn't hurt that the Falcons have Michael Vick, arguably the most dangerous running quarterback in NFL history, calling signals. Yet even somebody with Vick's variety of moves needs help, and halfbacks Warrick Dunn and T.J. Duckett have provided plenty of aid. If the Falcons have designs on upsetting the Eagles in Sunday's NFC championship game at Lincoln Financial Field, Dunn and Duckett will have to put a dent in the Birds' run defense, which is fueled by the relentless pursuit of middle linebacker Jeremiah Trotter.

It could have been completely different. Duce Staley knows that. There was nothing secret about it. If Warrick Dunn had chosen Philadelphia back in March, Staley likely would have played somewhere else this season. Brian Westbrook probably wouldn't have been the Eagles' third-round pick, since Dunn would have filled his role. Maybe the Eagles would have brought in Dorsey Levens to replace Correll Buckhalter, maybe not. It could have been different, but it isn't. Staley, who was named the Eagles' offensive MVP by his teammates last week, doesn't dwell on it. "I understood what went on with Warrick," Staley said.

Star running back Warrick Dunn agreed to a six-year, $24 million deal with the Atlanta Falcons last night, the Orlando Sentinel reported. Dunn, who was wooed by the Eagles last weekend, will get a signing bonus of more than $6.5 million, the paper said. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the only team Dunn had played for in his five pro seasons, were given a chance to match the Falcons' offer but declined. The Bucs also released cornerback Donnie Abraham, the team's all-time leader with 30 interceptions, and he now is now free to sign with any team.

Duce Staley and his many fans in the area can exhale. According to NFL sources familiar with negotiations involving running back Warrick Dunn, the Eagles dropped out of talks yesterday. Staley, who is due a $500,000 roster bonus tomorrow, is likely to receive that bonus and be back with the Eagles for the 2002 season. The Eagles continued to talk with the agent for free-agent safety Blaine Bishop yesterday. But the team is hedging its bets and has set up a visit for tomorrow with Shaun Williams, who played four seasons with the New York Giants.

Warrick Dunn was in Atlanta yesterday visiting the Falcons. He is scheduled to "check in" today with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, his employers for the last five years, according to agent Leigh Steinberg. None of that, Steinberg said, means the Eagles are out of the running for the 27-year-old free agent's services. Indeed, Dunn is planning to make his decision today. "I think things will move expeditiously after that," Steinberg said yesterday. Dunn visited Detroit as well as the Falcons and the Eagles.

With deafening silence from one prospective free agent, the Eagles began courting another yesterday. Safety Blaine Bishop, who has spent his entire nine-year career with the Houston Oilers and Tennessee Titans, arrived in Philadelphia yesterday. Bishop, 31, started his visit with a physical examination. He'll tour the NovaCare Complex and meet with the coaches today. Another safety the Eagles were looking at, Brock Marion, re-signed with Miami over the weekend. Bishop, who missed a chunk of the 2001 season with a foot injury, is the leading candidate to replace strong safety Damon Moore, who blew out his knee in the NFC championship game and whose contract expired.

Warrick Dunn wanted to get out of town. The free-agent running back seemed to like Philadelphia, and he said that he liked what he'd seen of the Eagles organization in a visit Thursday night and yesterday. He even liked the weather. "It's winter and the weather is ideal," he said outside the NovaCare Complex, the Eagles' practice facility. But he made it clear that he didn't want to make any long-term decisions while under the influence of the Eagles' sales pitch. "I'm going to leave the city," Dunn said.

Warrick Dunn wants to be a featured running back. The Eagles are fascinated by Dunn's quickness and big-play ability. That's why the Tampa Bay Buccaneers veteran will be at the NovaCare Complex today, meeting with Eagles coach Andy Reid and his offensive staff. Dunn, 27, is an unrestricted free agent who is exploring his options but could still return to his former team. Dunn visited the Detroit Lions yesterday but flew to Philadelphia without a deal. The Lions signed wide receiver Az-Zahir Hakim away from the St. Louis Rams and may not be in the market for another big free-agent deal.