1) Baltimore Ravens
Best defense in the league has a good matchup.

2) Philadelphia Eagles
Eagles are rolling and could bottle Vikings.

3) Indianapolis Colts
Colts defense has been scoring fantasy points.

4) Minnesota Vikings
Pressure on McNabb could cause a big game.

5) Miami Dolphins
Going against a rookie QB makes Miami startable.

6) Atlanta Falcons
High risk, high reward type start this weekend.

7) Arizona Cardinals
Defense hasn’t been much to brag about lately.

San Diego Chargers
Bad defense against good offense.

1) Reggie Wayne, Indianapolis Colts
Going against the Chargers, Wayne should shine.

2) Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons
White has great matchup against Cardinals.

3) Anquan Boldin, Arizona Cardinals
Boldin is going to fight through injury to play.

4) Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals
Should rack up plenty of yards this weekend.

5) Derrick Mason, Baltimore Ravens
Ol’ veteran still making big plays.

6) Vincent Jackson, San Diego Chargers
Jackson has been hot in recent weeks.

7) Bernard Berrian, Minnesota Vikings
Big play threat could spark Vikings.

DeSean Jackson, Philadelphia Eagles
Young gun is best receiving threat for Eagles.

9) Ted Ginn Jr., Miami Dolphins
Risky but could payoff with big reward.

10) Kevin Curtis, Philadelphia Eagles
Sleeper who could beat the Vikings deep.

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1) Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons
Turner has a good matchup and is running well.

2) Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
Peterson has talent will get a ton of touches.

3) Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
Perhaps the most explosive of all the RBs.

4) LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers
Not as dominant but will still produce.

5) Joseph Addai, Indianapolis Colts
Good matchup despite makes him startable.

6) Ronnie Brown, Miami Dolphins
Tough matchup but could surprise.

7) LeRon McClain, Baltimore Ravens
RB by committee but should get touches.

Tim Hightower, Arizona Cardinals
Only a TD threat at this point.

Are you playing playoff fantasy football? If so, here are our quarterback rankings for the first week of the 2008 NFL playoffs.

1) Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
Manning is on a role and should slice up the Chargers.

2) Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers
Rivers should be good for a couple touchdowns.

3) Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals
Warner has been cold but thrives on big stage.

4) Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia Eagles
Should throw plenty of passes this weekend.

5) Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
Rookie keeps on surprising.

6) Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens
Not a great start but could do well.

7) Chad Pennington, Miami Dolphins
Going against a tough defense.

Tarvaris Jackson, Minnesota Vikings
Not very good.

If you are going to be playing playoff fantasy football, you obviously should be well aware of the NFL playoff picture. Here’s the NFL playoff schedule for the first week of the playoffs so you can start to figure out which fantasy players you want to get on your team in playoff fantasy football.

Saturday, January 3rd - 4:30 PM Eastern
Atlanta Falcons at the Arizona Cardinals

Saturday, January 3rd - 8:00 PM Eastern
Indianapolis Colts at San Diego Chargers

Sunday, January 4th - 1:00 PM Eastern
Baltimore Ravens at Miami Dolphins

Sunday, January 4th - 4:30 PM Eastern
Philadelphia Eagles at Minnesota Vikings

Bye Week: Tennessee Titans, Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Giants, Carolina Panthers

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QB Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
Capping off a masterful season, Saints quarterback Drew Brees threw for 386 yards and four touchdowns. He finished the season with more than 5000 passing yards — a number that made him a fantasy football favorite all season long. Going into 2009, Brees has to be a top flight QB option in the fantasy world.

RB Michael Bush, Oakland Raiders
In their stunning victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Raiders running back Michael Bush proved he has NFL level talent. He ran for two touchdowns and 177 yards. Although the Raiders will likely build their future running game around Darren McFadden, Bush showed enough in the season finale to be a candidate to split time with McFadden next season.

WR Andre Johnson, Houston Texans
Andre Johnson finished a very productive 2008 fantasy football season with ten catches, 148 yards and two touchdowns in the final week of the season. The Texans have emerged as a quality offensive team and next season, the Matt Schaub and Johnson connection could be one of the best in the entire NFL.

TE Tony Scheffler, Denver Broncos
Although it was a quiet week for tight ends in Week 17, Tony Scheffler managed to have a good game. The Broncos starting tight end had five catches for 75 yards and a touchdown grab. All in all, Scheffler had his moments in 2008 fantasy football but injuries and inconsistency kept him from being a top fantasy tight end.

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QB Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
The great thing about Drew Brees is that he gets so many passing yards that he’s almost always a productive fantasy football player. Even when he struggles with interceptions, his passing yards and touchdowns usually overshadow his struggles.

RB Matt Forte, Chicago Bears
Even though he’s a rookie, Matt Forte has been amazingly consistent this season. He gets a lot of touches and almost always makes positive plays. He’s rushed for nearly 1200 yards and has more than 60 receptions on the season. Best of all, he has 12 total touchdowns.

WR Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions
The Lions will likely complete the first 0-16 season in the history of the NFL, but Calvin Johnson isn’t at fault. He’s had a very consistent season, even though he’s had to withstand mostly horrible quarterback play. If he ever is put in a situation with a good quarterback, he could become the best wide receiver in the NFL.

TE Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City Chiefs
Tony Gonzalez has been the only consistent fantasy football tight end of 2009. Just about every week of the season, Gonzalez has produced for his fantasy football owners. Not bad for a player thought to be too old.

QB Seneca Wallace, Seattle Seahawks
It appears as if Matt Hasselbeck will be missing another game in Week 17. In his place, Seneca Wallace could very well have a big game. He’s going against an Arizona Cardinals defense that just got destroyed in Week 16.

RB LaMont Jordan, New England Patriots
After missing most of the season with a calf injury, LaMont Jordan is back and producing for the Patriots. Although he’s not starting, he’s been getting goal line carries and the bulk of the carries when the game is out of reach. In the last two weeks, he has three touchdowns.

WR Jerheme Urban, Arizona Cardinals
Since Anquan Boldin is going to likely miss another week and most fantasy football leagues already have Steve Breaston on a roster, Jerheme Urban is the player to target on most waiver wires. He’s getting a few passes his way and with the Cardinals going against the Seahawks, he could be productive in Week 17.

TE Anthony Fasano, Miami Dolphins
In the first couple weeks of the season, Anthony Fasano looked like the real deal in terms of fantasy football production. He then went on a long dry spell but now he’s back in the fantasy equation after posting three touchdowns in the last three weeks.

Antonio Bryant, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Last season, Antonio Bryant didn’t even play in the NFL. This season, he’s one of the game’s best wide receivers. In fantasy football, no wide receiver has been better as of late. He has five touchdowns in the last four weeks and three games of over 100 yards receiving. In one of those games, he had over 200 yards receiving.

Steve Smith, Carolina Panthers
Although he wasn’t great in Week 16 against the New York Giants, Steve Smith has been very productive as of late. In Week 14 and Week 15, he had nine receptions, 100+ yards and a touchdown in each game. Overall, he has four games of 100+ receiving yards in his last five.

Vincent Jackson, San Diego Chargers
After going without a catch in Week 13, Vincent Jackson has rewarded those fantasy football owners who stuck with him. In the last three weeks, Jackson has 18 catches, two touchdowns and 348 receiving yards.

Wes Welker, New England Patriots
Although Randy Moss is the better receiver, Wes Welker has been very consistent and very productive as of late. He has a touchdown in each of his last two games. In the previous game, he had 12 catches for 134 yards.

Stephen Gostkowski, New England Patriots
Even though the Patriots don’t have Tom Brady, they’ve been able to find ways to move the ball. Kicker Stephen Gostkowski has taken advantage of 34 of his 37 field goal attempts and all 39 extra points. In Week 16, he had his best fantasy scoring game of the season against the Arizona Cardinals.

Kris Brown, Houston Texans
Over the last seven weeks, Kris Brown has been very good in fantasy football. He has at least two field goals in each game and at least one extra point. He went through a rough stretch earlier in the season but has been very productive once the Texans’ schedule got easier.

Rob Bironas, Tennessee Titans
Although Rob Bironas has been boom or bust lately, his booms have been impressive enough to start him on a weekly basis. In the last four weeks, he has two games in which he finished the contest with four field goals. He also hasn’t missed a field goal since Week 10.

Garrett Hartley, New Orleans Saints
Since taking over the kicking duties for the Saints in Week 10, Garrett Hartley has been extremely impressive. He has connected on all 12 field goal attempts and all 24 extra points. With the Saints having one of the better offenses in the league, Hartley should be money again in Week 17 and a sought after kicker in 2009.