So much for Volek being a good start this weekend. According to The Tennesseean, Matt Mauck has been informed that he'll start if McNair can't go. Apparently, Norm Chow thinks that Mauck is "spunky", but you don't get points for spunk in your fantasy league. Given the uncertainty around both who's going to start and what Mauck can do given the opportunity, you're best looking elsewhere for QB help if you need it.

Our discussion on this week's show of college bowl games to watch to get an early look at next spring's NFL (and your fantasy team) draft prospects brings up an interesting conundrum. If the Texans lose in Week 17, they will be assured of the #1 pick in the draft, and therefore will win the Reggie Bush Sweepstakes outright. If they win (vs. SF), 5 teams will be tied for the worst record in the league, and each will have a chance at getting the #1 pick.

So, should the Texans lose on purpose to assure themselves of getting Reggie Bush? What a fascinating ethical question! On espn.com SportsNation, 67% of respondents to that question said they would support their team tanking to get a #1 pick. What do you think? Go to our message board and vote in the poll, and tell us your opinion!

It's Week 17 and everything's upside down and topsy turvy, but we'll help you create a method to the madness. On this episode, Scott and Steve talk about which teams have everything to play for, which teams have nothing to play for, and what effect that will have on your fantasy team. Plus, Scott breaks down which Bowl games are good to watch this week if you want to get a jump start on the rookies for next year's fantasy team.

There's still time to join our Playoff Fantasy League! (Choose "Join An Existing League" and look for "ExtraPoints"; enter the password "podcast" to join.) When you sign up, drop us an e-mail at ExtraPointsPodcast@gmail.com and let us know what your team name is. We look forward to competing with you!

We're looking for contributions for our first annual fantasy season retrospective show during the Super Bowl bye week. E-mail or call us with what you've learned from the 2005 fantasy season and we'll include it in the show!

Apparently, Marvin Harrison was downgraded to out on today's revision of the injury report. The silver lining is that makes at least one Colts starter's playing time clear for this weekend. Needless to say, get him out of your lineup if you haven't already.

Just in time for your fantasy playoffs, a number of reliable running backs are unlikely to play this weekend:

Domanick Davis's knee isn't getting better, and there's talk of him possibly needing surgery. Jonathan Wells filled in admirably for Davis last week against Arizona. While you may need to temper your expectations given the tougher matchup against Jacksonville, Wells would still be a solid start.

Rotoworld is reporting that Lamont Jordan has been ruled out against the Broncos. Zack Crockett and Justin Fargas are next in line, but it's hard to say what the split will be or how effective either one will be against a tough Denver run defense.

Ronnie Brown hasn't been practicing, and he's unsure of whether he'll be able to go this weekend. If Brown sits, Ricky Williams becomes an excellent start against the Titans; given what he's been able to do with half the carries, he could blow up with a full workload.

On the other side of that matchup, both Chris Brown and Travis Henry have missed portions of practice this week. Henry is closer to playing than Brown, but monitor this situation closely if you are relying on either one to play this weekend.

This is probably old news by now, but in case you haven't heard, Tony Dungy has taken a leave of absence to be with his family after his son was found dead in his Tampa apartment. We at Extra Points offer our deepest condolences to the entrire Dungy family and anyone else who was affected by this tragedy.

...Please make sure to make your way over to our message board and post in the new forum that I set up for the Playoff Fantasy Football Challenge. After all, it's not a fantasy league without somewhere to smack talk, right? And even if you're not signing up, head over there anyway and introduce yourself. We love to talk to you guys!

Scott and Steve are headed to their respective Super Bowls, and hopefully you are too! If you are, we're here to help you finish off your championship run! On this episode: The Battle of Who Could Care Less, starring the Colts and the Seahawks; an LT let-down; the Green Bay blues; and, of course, your e-mails!

Sign up for our Playoff Fantasy Football league and compete against Scott and Steve, as well as your fellow listeners! When you sign up, choose "Join An Existing League" and look for "ExtraPoints"; enter the password "podcast" to join. The winner of the league wins a copy of the book Committed: Confessions of a Fantasy Football Junkie by Mark St. Amant!

Also, put yourself on our Frappr map!

We're still taking questions for Week 17 as well as the rest of your feedback, so please e-mail us at ExtraPointsPodcast@gmail.com or call our voicemail line at 206-3-EXTRA-3 (206-339-8723)!

It's a "better late than never" playoff edition of Extra Points! We discuss the status of the Colts starters, QB changes in Oakland and New Orleans, and, most importantly, answer questions from our overflowing mailbag!

Links:
Israelisms Mrs. B's Patriot World

As always, we're going to try to answer as many e-mails next week for an extremely crucial week 16, so get your fantasy questions to us at ExtraPointsPodcast@gmail.com, or call our voice mail line at 206-3-EXTRA-3 (206-339-8723)!

In case you were worried, we will be posting this week's show either tonight or tomorrow, in time to get your lineups ready for Saturday's games (remember, there are 3 games on Sat. this week! NE vs. TB, KC vs. NYG, and DEN vs. BUF). We apologize for the delay...

...but in the meantime, please visit our message board! There's a link on the right side of this page. Vote in our poll on whether or not you think Indy should rest their starters. Ask us a fantasy football question! Ask Scott a soccer question! Or post some comments for us and your fellow listeners. It's loads of fun!

Curtis Martin is going to have season-ending surgery on his knee, and will miss his first start since 1998 (wow- that's amazing for any player, but even more so for a running back). Cedric Houston gets the nod in his place.

So if you were holding onto Martin (like me), time to find a replacement.

Curtis Martin has been downgraded to questionable and will be a game time decision against Oakland. Even if he does play (which isn't out of the question; you have to go back a long time to find a game that Martin missed due to injury), according to Herm Edwards, Martin is basically playing at half speed anyway. Cedric Houston is next on the depth chart, but he's not a great play, even against Oakland, given the Jets' offensive struggles this season.

This is just too bizarre. I'm not even going to try to comment on the article; it more or less speaks for itself...

OK, Moulds is really suspended now. Get him out of your lineups if you've been holding out hope.

It looks like the media jumped to conclusions, once again. Now, ESPN is reporting that Eric Moulds was simply "excused from practice" on Wednesday and Thursday, and his status is unclear against New England this week.

In any case, even if he's not suspended, you're well advised to find another starting WR this week; how much Moulds will play is uncertain, suspension or no suspension, and Losman clearly favors Lee Evans anyway, so Moulds probably isn't a good play against the Patriots, despite the favorable matchup.

Reports are surfacing today that the Bills will suspend WR Eric Moulds for this Sunday's game vs. New England. However, Bills owner Ralph Wilson has the final say on the length of the suspension. The team did not disclose a reason for the suspension, but there is some conjecture that it stems from Moulds missing a mandatory team meeting on Monday. He had also criticized the team's play-calling (and their lack of including him in it) in the Bills' loss to Miami last weekend, when they relinquished a 20-point 4th quarter lead. Moulds was apparantly "shocked and confused" by the decision when coach Mike Mularkey broke the news to him earlier this week.

So if he's in your lineup for this week, look for a replacement!

It's playoff time! Scott and Steve are here to guide you through the Elite Eight to your fantasy Super Bowl.

On this episode: Here's to you, Mr. Robinson; the Eagles become an endangered species; would you like Fryes with that?; pronunciation issues in Oakland; and whether JP Losman is a master of comedy or tragedy.

Make sure to send us feedback and ask your questions for fantasy advice for us to answer on the next show! You can e-mail us at ExtraPointsPodcast@gmail.com, or call our voicemail line at 206-339-8723 (206-3-EXTRA-3).

CBS reported that, when asked if his thumb is broken, Ben Roethlisberger replied, "I don't think I can disclose that." He may as well have just taken the Fifth and would have given less of an answer.

If you were planning on playing Big Ben or any of the Steelers receivers this week against the Bengals, you may want to consider your other options; if the thumb really is broken, he's not going to be throwing well, and if he aggravates the injury, then he may end up getting knocked out of the game all together.

CBS's pre-game show just announced that Charlie Frye, not Trent Dilfer, will start for the Browns this week. Get Dilfer out of your lineup if you had him in line to start for you.

Detroit RB Kevin Jones has been downgraded to questionable, and will be a game-time decision. We all know the drill on mid-week downgrades by now; if you need an excuse not to play Kevin Jones, this is a very good one. If Jones doesn't go, Artose Pinner and Shawn Bryson will likely split carries, but a RBBC on a team that's struggled to run the ball all season doesn't really seem like a recipe for success if you need a fill-in RB...

Greetings listerners (and web site visitors!). Just wanted to make you aware of a new poll I put out on our message board today, in the "Football Discussion" Category. There's a link to our message board on the right side of this page.

We've mentioned in the last couple of episodes how the Colts (and maybe Seahawks) will likely bench some of their more valuable players once they clinch homefield advantage. What do you think: is this a good idea?

Vote in the poll, and then add to the message thread with your opinions.

Good luck in Week 13! --SB

Neil Rackers will miss at least one game after hurting his calf in practice. That's very bad news if you're a Rackers owner, because he's been easily the most consistent kicker in the league this year. The Cards don't have a replacement yet, but there should be plenty of acceptable options available for you on the waiver wire, so take a look and pick someone up before Sunday...