Those of us obsessed with fantasy football now have some tangible information to start studying. On Tuesday, the league released the 2009 NFL schedules for each team.

While it’s a lot of information to digest at once, one team that looks to have a friendly fantasy football schedule is the Arizona Cardinals. Last season, Kurt Warner and the Cardinals made it to the Super Bowl. This coming season, a lot of fantasy football owners could be counting on Warner to lead their teams to a fantasy football Super Bowl.

Here’s a look at the Cardinals schedule:

Week 1 - San Francisco
Week 2 - @ Jacksonville
Week 3 - Indianapolis
Week 5 - Houston
Week 6 - @ Seattle
Week 7 - @ NY Giants
Week 8 - Carolina
Week 9 - @ Chicago
Week 10 - Seattle
Week 11 - @ St. Louis
Week 12 - @ Tennessee
Week 13 - Minnesota
Week 14 - @ San Francisco
Week 15 - @ Detroit
Week 16 - St. Louis
Week 17 - Green Bay

Pay special attention to the money weeks of the fantasy football season — Week 14 through Week 16. Three games against bad defense during the fantasy playoffs? That fact alone just raised the stock value of everyone on the Cardinals’ offense including Kurt Warner.

Kurt Warner, Fantasy Football Star in 2009? (Image: Newscom)

According to Kurt Warner’s agent, the star quarterback will return to the NFL for the 2009 fantasy football season. Although the agent wouldn’t guarantee that Warner will sign with the Cardinals, he said that the quarterback definitely wants to return. When contacted, Warner didn’t say he was definitely coming back but he did say he was leaning in that direction.

All of this comes as good news to the fantasy football world. Warner is one of the most explosive quarterbacks in the business and he showed that tendency once again in 2008. During the Cardinals’ magical trip to the Super Bowl, Warner was extremely impressive.

If Warner returns, his stock should be somewhat high. He has very good receivers and an offense that lets him toss the ball around. The negatives will be his advanced age and the fact that he is injury prone.

This is also good news for the Cardinals receivers. Larry Fitzgerald will be a top five wide receiver next year in fantasy football with Warner at the helm. Although Anquan Boldin isn’t happy in Arizona at the moment, if he changes his mind, Warner would do wonders for his production.

Kurt Warner had a very good 2008 fantasy football campaign and almost capped his year by leading the Arizona Cardinals to a Super Bowl championship. Unfortunately for Warner and the Cardinals, Ben Roethlisberger’s late game heroics gave the Pittsburgh Steelers the Super Bowl victory.

When considering Warner’s 2009 fantasy football outlook, the first major obstacle is obviously whether or not Warner is even coming back to the NFL next season. After the Super Bowl, he was non-committal either way. Since the Super Bowl, Warner has said that his return could be dependent upon whether or not Anquan Boldin stays or not.

If Warner does return, the next thing to worry about is his age. Warner will be 38 years old by the time next season begins. While other quarterbacks have had success at that age, Warner’s would definitely be an injury concern. Plus if he loses any velocity on his throwing, he could begin struggling — much like Brett Favre in 2008.

All that said, if Warner returns in 2009, he’s going to be a very interesting fantasy football quarterback who could build upon his 2008 success. In the playoffs, he played much better than he did to end the regular season. Next season, a healthy Warner definitely has a chance to throw between 35 and 38 touchdowns.

QB Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals
Although the Cardinals lost the Super Bowl, it wasn’t Kurt Warner’s fault. He had a very good game, especially in the fantasy football world. He finished the Super Bowl with three touchdowns, one interception and 377 passing yards.

RB Willie Parker, Pittsburgh Steelers
No running back in the Super Bowl had much of an impact. Willie Parker was the best but he didn’t help out too much. In 19 rushes, Parker picked up 53 yards. The Steelers had a rushing touchdown but it came courtesy of backup RB Gary Russell.

WR Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals
Early on, it looked like the Steelers might be able to take Larry Fitzgerald out of the game. But late, Fitzgerald found room and ended up with very good stats. In the Super Bowl, Fitzgerald finished with nine catches, 127 yards and two touchdown grabs.

TE Ben Patrick, Arizona Cardinals
Although Heath Miller of the Steelers had a decent game, Ben Patrick was was able to score a touchdown from the tight end position. The Cardinals backup caught a one yard pass to give Warner his first touchdown pass and Arizona’s first points on the night.

Heading into this year’s Super Bowl, perhaps the most explosive fantasy football player on the field will be a familiar face. Kurt Warner, who has helped countless fantasy teams win championships over the years, has a chance to be a fantasy stud during the Super Bowl.

Although the former NFL MVP and NFL Super Bowl champion with the St. Louis Rams has been extremely hot as of late, it’s easy to forget how cold he was not too long ago. Between Week 11 and Week 16, he had more than one touchdown in a game just one time. During that stretch, he had 7 touchdowns and 7 interceptions.

That said, most of the attention is focused on how hot Warner has been lately. In the last game of the regular season, Warner had four touchdowns and more than 260 passing yards. In the three games in the 2008 NFL playoffs, Warner has a total of eight touchdowns and has at least 220 passing yards in each game. Almost equally as impressive is the fact that he has only two interceptions and no fumbles in the playoffs.

What should we expect from Kurt Warner in the Super Bowl? Logic tells us he shouldn’t be overly explosive in the Big Game. The Pittsburgh Steelers only allowed 157 passing yards per game during the regular season and only 12 passing touchdowns. However, even with that in mind, if there’s one quarterback who could figure out a way to excel against Pittsburgh, it’d be Warner — especially considering how well he has played as of late.

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.

QB Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals
Although Kurt Warner has been a lot better than expected during the 2008 fantasy football season, he hasn’t been overly productive in the fantasy football world as of late. In his last five games, he has one touchdown pass in four of those contests. In Week 16 against the New England Patriots, Warner could very well struggle.

RB Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants
There are a lot of reasons to be wary of Brandon Jacobs this week. First of all, he’s coming off of an injury and there’s no telling how healthy he really is. Secondly, the Giants are facing the Carolina Panthers this week. Last but not least, Jacobs doesn’t have a 100+ yard outing since Week 10.

WR Laveranues Coles, New York Jets
Laveranues Coles has had a relatively good fantasy football season, but he simply hasn’t been consistent enough to trust as of late. In two our of his last three games, he has less than ten yards receiving. He also only has one touchdown in his last seven games. Even this week’s solid matchup against the Seattle Seahawks doesn’t make him a very good start.

TE Chris Cooley, Washington Redskins
Even though he’s a well known player, Chris Cooley isn’t giving fantasy owners much reason to believe in him. During the entire 2008 NFL season, Cooley has only one touchdown grab. Last week against a bad Cincinnati Bengals defense, the Redskins managed only 13 points. Going against a tough Philadelphia Eagles defense this week, it’d be best to look elsewhere for tight end production.

QB Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals
This is a dream matchup for fantasy football Kurt Warner owners. At home going against his former team, Warner should be able to destroy the St. Louis Rams. He played well against the Rams earlier in the season and that was on the road. This team, he should be able to go for at least 320 yards and two touchdowns.

RB Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
Going up against the Detroit Lions, Adrian Peterson should be running early and often. The Lions are putrid defensively and the Vikings should easily be able to move the ball. The only thing that could stop Peterson in Week 14 is if it’s a blowout early and the the Vikings let him rest.

WR Randy Moss, New England Patriots
Last week, Randy Moss was relatively quiet. However, that wasn’t two surprising considering the Patriots were playing the Pittsburgh Steelers. In Week 14, the Patriots have a much easier matchup — the Seattle Seahawks. Expect Moss to be a big part of the game plan to run over the Seahawks.

TE Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City Chiefs
Tony Gonzalez is not only the best tight end at the moment in fantasy football, he’s going up against the weak defense of the Denver Broncos. He should be able to have a very good game. The Broncos aren’t a good pass defending team and Gonzalez is easily the number one option on the Chiefs on the offensive side of the ball.

QB Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals
Kurt Warner is the hottest quarterback in fantasy football. It seems like every week he goes out there, he’s going to put up at least 300 yards passing and two touchdowns. If you had forgotten why Warner is a two-time Super Bowl champion, he has reminded you with his recent play. As long as Warner can remain healthy, he’s going to be a fantasy football force for the rest of the 2008 season.

RB Frank Gore, San Francisco 49ers
Although the St. Louis Rams showed a little bit of life a couple weeks ago, they seem to have reversed a bit. Against the New York Jets last weekend, they got demolished — with a lot of the damage coming from running back Thomas Jones. That’s why Frank Gore is such a good start this week. Gore has played very well this week and this juicy matchup has him at the top of the running back list in Week 11.

WR Steve Smith, Carolina Panthers
When it comes to bad defenses, it doesn’t get much worse than the Detroit Lions. The Lions will face off against the Panthers this week, which likely means a big game for Steve Smith. Smith will draw a lot of attention, no doubt, but Detroit still won’t be able to stop him. The only way Smith doesn’t explode is if the Panthers are up early and stop passing the ball.

TE Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City Chiefs
Tony Gonzalez has a very good matchup this weekend against the New Orleans Saints. With Tyler Thigpen playing very well at quarterback, Gonzalez is now a threat to have a big game each and every week. Coming off of a quality fantasy football performance, look for him to follow it up with more big numbers in Week 11 of the fantasy season.

QB Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals
As we expected, Kurt Warner was the best fantasy quarterback in the NFL in Week 9. Playing against his former team the St. Louis Rams, Warner had 342 passing yards to go along with two touchdown passes. The only thing keeping Warner from being mentioned as the best fantasy football quarterback is the injury concerns that surround him.

RB Chris Johnson, Tennessee Titans
Chris Johnson is quickly becoming one of the most feared running backs in all of the NFL. In Week 9, Johnson helped lead the Titans to victory with 89 rushing yards, 72 receiving yards and a touchdown. Although LenDale White steals some of his touchdowns, Johnson has become a must start each and every fantasy football week.

WR Derrick Mason, Baltimore Ravens
Coming off of a week where he only had three yards, many fantasy football owners were scared away from starting Derrick Mason in Week 9. Too bad for those owners because Mason was a fantasy football superstar in this game against the Cleveland Browns. He finished the contest with nine catches, 136 yards and a touchdown reception in the Ravens victory.

TE Owen Daniels, Houston Texans
A couple weeks ago, we said Owen Daniels was one of the most underrated fantasy football players in the NFL. We also said Daniels would be the best tight end this week. After his 11 catch, 133 yard performance in Week 9, Owens is no longer a secret in the world of fantasy football.