OK, the Championship Week rankings are up, we've discussed them here and here, and we'll have all the necessary weather reports and player updates on Sunday morning at Fantasy Football Live. And some of you are already losing 42-0 to the team with Manning and Clark.

There's just one thing left to say: If you're not in the title game, try to stay out of the way. Limit the add/drops. No waiver claims, please. This is just good fantasy etiquette.

If you're in a keeper league, that's different. Or if there's a serious incentive to finish in third place -- like a very small virtual trophy, for example -- that's different, too.

But c'mon, if you're in the consolation bracket, just play whichever stiffs got you there. Don't disturb the grown-ups.

Before we get to the Week 16 ranks, let's quickly discuss weather.

The early forecast for Sunday's Arizona-New England matchup is dicey -- some would call it a "wintry mix" -- and if game-day conditions are miserable, you'll want to reduce your fantasy investment in the game.

But you have to wait until Sunday to make that call. If you have an elite player in a favorable matchup, don't bench him unless a significant meteorological event is imminent. Like with sirens and urgent warnings. Flights need to be grounded. Citizens need to be stockpiling food. Don't bench anyone over flurries, light rain, or moderate wind.

We'll update game-time conditions on Sunday morning over at Fantasy Football Live. If you need to remove Matt Cassel from your lineup, we'll tell you about it. For now, he's ranked as though the weather will be tolerable. The Cardinals have allowed more touchdown passes than any team in the NFL (31), and the Patriots are right behind them (26). Don't back off that game

Every Friday during the NFL season, we'll review the Yahoo! weekly position ranks. If an expert breaks from the herd on a particular player, they'll be asked to show their work. You're encouraged to discuss the wisdom or lunacy of these opinions in comments.

Kevin Smith (Behrens rank: 13, Y! colleagues: 16-19-23)

Smith has averaged 97.5 total yards per game over the past six weeks, and he's done it against a series of playoff-quality defenses. Check the game log. It's been an impressive stretch. If numbers don't do it for you, check the highlights. This is a talented back who happens to play for a spectacularly unsuccessful team. The Saints aren't particularly tough against the run, they allow 25.2 points per game, and they're 1-6 on the road. There's no obvious reason to fear their defense. And even if you did fear the New Orleans defense, you still have to like Smith's workload. He's averaging over 19 carries per game over the Lions previous six games. In a week where several marquee

Most teams returned to practice Wednesday, and as usual, there's plenty of news to digest:

• Marvin Harrison (hamstring) has officially been ruled out for Thursday's game at Jacksonville, which makes Anthony Gonzalez a starter and a credible reach play. Dallas Clark (hip) is listed as questionable but it would be a stunner if he doesn't play. Joseph Addai (shoulder) is also questionable and is a far riskier start; I wouldn't play him unless I felt forced into it.

• Anquan Boldin (shoulder) didn't practice and keep in mind he's coming off three sub-par games in a row (starting with the messy Thursday night affair in Philadelphia). It's hard to imagine this keeping him off the field but we'll see what happens the next two days.

• Frank Gore (ankle) was off the field Wednesday as expected and remains very questionable. DeShaun Foster, surprisingly decent last week at Miami, remains the fallback.

• Brandon Jacobs (knee) did some work Wednesday and context clues point to him starting Sunday

The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports that the Saints have placed Reggie Bush on the injured reserve list, ending his season.

This is not a huge surprise, of course. Bush originally injured his left knee back in Week 7, then had surgery to repair a torn meniscus. He missed the Saints' next four games and returned to find himself in a job-share situation with Pierre Thomas. Bush appeared to aggravate the knee injury against the Bears in Week 15. He was benched by Sean Payton in Chicago, sent to Dr. James Andrews this week, and now he's on IR.

If you're a Thomas owner who had any lingering Bush-related fears, you can relax. Thomas will face the NFL's worst run defense in Week 16, and he should get a full workload. You can't sit him.

We should also mention that 11,387 of you have voted, and it appears that Thomas won't make it to Round 4 in fantasy drafts next season. According to 38 percent of blog voters, Thomas should go in either the first or second round in 2009 drafts. Another 34

Not a lot going on, but if you're still alive in the fantasy playoffs, it's news you can use.

• Joseph Addai (shoulder) had a full day Tuesday but the Colts haven't guaranteed that he'll be ready for Thursday's game at Jacksonville (Team President Bill Polian considers Addai questionable to play). Marvin Harrison (knee) didn't practice Tuesday.

• There's speculation that the Saints could put Reggie Bush on ice for the rest of the year, and the team won't make a decision until James Andrews has a look at the latest Bush MRI. One other thing that seems painfully obvious to everyone – Pierre Thomas is this team's most effective back right now.

• Matt Forte (toe) is confident he'll be good to go for Monday's game against the Packers. It's a critical one for Chicago, which just about guarantees the rookie will be in there.

• Frank Gore (ankle) is making modest progress but it's too soon to know if he'll be able to gash the Rams this week. DeShaun Foster didn't look bad at Miami.

• Brandon

When the NFL's highest-scoring offense (New Orleans, 27.9 PPG) faces the league's most scored-upon defense (Detroit, 31.7), you don't really need an expert to break things down. Still, we feel obligated to highlight the matchup. You can't bench many Saints in Week 16, except for employee No. 25.

It's worth noting that all three Lions of distinction -- Megatron, Kevin Smith, Jason Hanson -- are solid fantasy plays in championship week, and Dan Orlovsky is on the radar, too. The Saints allow the fifth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks and receivers, and they've given up four rushing TDs over the last two weeks.

So neither defense is any good, and both offenses have some weapons. Now that New Orleans has been eliminated from playoff contention, the game is essentially being played for fantasy purposes. It's not the only Week 16 contest fitting that description, but it's arguably the best.

Here's the usual Tuesday review of the league's most user-friendly Ds:

The teams above are sorted

A handful of random notes collected from Week 15; working title: how I learned to stop worrying and love Tarvaris Jackson.

• The final few minutes of the Chargers win just slayed me, as I needed to duck Philip Rivers scoring in a handful of leagues. I've never been a big fan of the punky Rivers - catch his soccer-player reaction to the go-ahead touchdown? - but I can't deny he's had an impressive growth season. Vincent Jackson has been the best receiver in San Diego for most of the year, while Chris Chambers belongs on a carton of milk. Antonio Gates? I'm not excited about the second half of his career, he doesn't look like someone who will age gracefully in his 30s. Did you win despite LaDainian Tomlinson's mediocre day? When you stumble to 2.6 yards a carry against the Chiefs (with a long of 7), something's wrong.

Let's set up the traffic light for the Chargers in 2009, in full Funston mode: Green Light: Rivers, Jackson, Nate Kaeding, defense if Shawne Merriman returns. Yellow Light: