Week 17 Sunday morning updates

Good morning, Fools. I hope you had a wonderful, safe, no-police-involved New Year's. I also hope you're playing for a Free for All Bowl prize rather than a championship today, because it could get ugly out there. Lots of stars sitting out the weekend's action, which should make for some interesting Heroes & Zeros tomorrow.

Let's take a look around the league as we prepare for the early games of Week 17...

The Chargers are expected to play Philip Rivers and other key starters only in the first half (maybe not the entire half) before bringing on the subs.

Peyton Manning & Co. likely won't even see that much action.

If Minnesota wins, don't expect to see much of Kurt Warner and the other Cardinals stars. But if they lose, Arizona has something to play for.

Most reports suggest the Packers will rest their starters most/all of today's game as well, though that could change depending on what happens earlier today.

I don't expect to see much of the Bengals' starters against the Jets either.

Drew Brees will be the Saints' No. 3 QB today, and Pierre Thomas and Lance Moore have already been ruled out. Don't expect much from Marques Colston or Reggie Bush either. Mark Brunell will start at QB, but don't expect him to soar against a Carolina defense that has been playing extremely well lately.

Good news for those counting on Donald Brown: Chad Simpson will sit out today's game with the Bills. He was the only guy likely to share carries with Brown, so look for a huge game by the rookie against the worst run defense in the land.

Ahmad Bradshaw is expected to play very sparingly with his bad ankles and feet. This is contrary to reports from earlier this week. Look for a heavy dose of Gartrell Johnson, with some Danny Ware mixed in, for the Gmen at the Vikings.

DeAngelo Williams is out again for the Panthers. Look for another big day from Jonathan Stewart.

Laurence Maroney (knee) and Kevin Faulk (healthy scratch) are both out for the Pats. Could be a very nice game for Sammy Morris, though Fred Taylor will get some carries, too.

Steven Jackson is active and will play today.

Ricky Williams also expected to play.

Michael Turner won't play for the Falcons, but it looks like Gonzo will suit up.

Devin Hester is expected to play for the Bears.

I heard a lot of hype from other "gurus" that Chargers WR Legedu Naanee would be a great play this week, with most of San Diego's starters sitting this one out. As it happens, Naanee will be out today with his foot injury. In fact, he may not even be back in time for their first playoff game.

Eddie Royal (neck/head) joins Tony Scheffler and Brandon Marshall on the sidelines today. Actually, I assume Marshall will be nowhere near the sidelines today...

Torry Holt won't play for the Jags.

Mario Manningham (shoulder) will sit this one out, too.

TE David Thomas, who has been pretty reliable in relief of the injured Jeremy Shockey, did not travel with the Saints to Carolina.

The kicking situation in San Francisco just keeps getting worse. First, Joe Nedney was sidelined with a bad hammy. Now, his replacement, Ricky Schmitt, hurt his groin and is out. Shane Andrus will kick for the Niners today.

After finally playing in last week's game, Adam Vinatieri (knee) is out again today. Matt Stover is back.

Neil Rackers will suit up for the Cards. Mike Nugent was waived.

High wind gusts and snow are expected in Cleveland today for the game with Jacksonville. The only players to like in this one are MJD and Jerome Harrison.

Bad weather (including 20-30 mph winds) are also in store for the game in Buffalo. You know Indy will be resting its key players, so expect good stuff out of Fred Jackson. If the weather were better, we might expect something good out of TO and Evans against the backups, but the conditions make them a risky bet.

Winds of 20-30 mph expected in NY for the Bengals-Jets game, and 10-20 mph winds are forecast for Carolina. Winds of 15-25 mph also expected in Miami for Steelers-Dolphins, but at least the temperature will be nice (high of 64 degrees).

Inactives are starting to be posted now. Look for my tweets for those and more late-breaking news.

Good luck to all Fools! Have a great day.