Conference Championship Rankings

Looks like some good conference championship match ups.  Can the lately disappointing Vikings' running game take advantage of the poor Saints' run defense to give Favre some breathing room?  Can the Jets continue to run the ball well against the "always better in the playoffs" Colts run D?  Should be a couple good games to watch.  Good luck as always!

QB
Tier 1
Brees

Tier 2
Favre
Manning

Tier 3
Sanchez

Brees will have to throw even more than usual since they will have a hard time running on the always stout running defense of Minnesota.  Favre and Manning appear to be interchangeable this week.  I give an edge to Favre in what could be a shootout in New Orleans.  Manning will have his hands full, but he will still get plenty of yards and a touchdown or two to be a good option as usual.  Sanchez won't be called to do much.  The Jets showed last week that they are unafraid to stay with the game plan even when down in the second half. 

RB
Tier 1
A. Peterson
S. Greene

Tier 2
J. Addai
T. Jones
R. Bush

Tier 3
P. Thomas
C. Taylor
D. Brown
L. Hamilton

Peterson is an easy call for top back this week against a Saints defense that hasn't been too good at stopping the run.  S. Greene has really skyrocketed up the rankings this postseason and should continue to run well against the Colts.  It will be interesting to see where he gets drafted next year(3-4 round?).  The Jets run D is
their "weak" area on defense so the Colts will need to run enough to keep all the pressure off Manning all game.  T. Jones has seen his carries dip a bit but will still get plenty of opportunities still.  Bush seems to be the key to victory this week against Minnesota.  I see a lot of dump passes in the Saint's game plan in place of them trying to run Pierre Thomas much at all. 

WR
Tier 1
Colston
S. Rice
Meachem

Tier 2
Wayne
Garcon
Cotchery

Tier 3
Henderson
Edwards
Harvin

Wide receiver sure looks like a weak position this weekend.  Colston has a solid matchup against Minnesota's secondary.  S. Rice won't have a big game again, but should still see plenty of passes come his way.  Meachem seems like the sneaky receiver play of the weak coming off a zero catch performance last week.  Wayne is hard to keep off the top of the list, but I thinkeveryone is aware of the Revis factor.  Revis was amazing last week and if he covered Jackson the whole game I doubt he would have had more than a catch or two.  Garcon shoots up the list as Manning willhave to pass to him and Clark the most to take advantage of the weaker areas in the Jets' pass defense.  Edwards and Cotchery aren't safe plays at all, but between the two Cotchery matches up better thisweek and obviously doesn't drop as many balls that will drive you crazy.

TE
Tier 1
Clark
Shockey

Tier 2
Keller
Shiancoe

Clark is an easy #1 even with the solid defense they are against.  They will find ways to get him open for a lot of catches I assume, especially if they don't throw Wayne's way too often.  Shockey should put up solid numbers as tight ends usually do against the Minnesota D just as Witten did last week as the only one on Dallas to be able to move the ball.  Keller has had a very impressive postseason so far and I assume Sanchez will continue to look for him the same way this week.  Shiancoe is a toss-up if you think he gets a TD or not, but the Saints did pretty well against tight ends this year and I see a lot of Peterson in the red zone when they get down there.

Not listing defenses or kickers this week.  There appears to be no advantage of any defenses left.  I would just go with who you have the strongest feeling will win the games in a time like this.