The Shot Caller's Report strives to identify players that are borderline fantasy plays and clarify whether they should be started or benched. Rather than telling you to start Peyton Manning and bench John Beck, the Report looks at those "stuck in the middle" guys and evaluates if they will help your team win.

It is officially crunch time in fantasy football leagues across the nation. Depending on league design, you have either two or three weeks to determine your playoff destiny. Will you be watching from the sidelines or looking to make a playoff run? For some unfortunate teams, pride is all they can play for while other teams sit back and watch the show, having already secured their post-season placement. If you drafted Tom Brady, Terrell Owens, or Randy Moss, you are likely in that latter category. For everyone else, here is some guidance on which players are the most likely to get you to the promised land.

Quarterbacks

Must Start:

Marc Bulger v. SEA: Since returning to the field in Week Seven, Bulger has been a serviceable option for those owners who sat on him the weeks it took to get healthy. Bulger will be an injury-risk the rest of the season as it looks like St. Louis imported the Texans offensive line, leaving their franchise quarterback at the mercy of blitzing linebackers. However, with Seattle winging the ball downfield all game and the Rams’ skill players healthy, expect a shoot-out.

Kurt Warner v. SF: Once again, it is time to start the quarterback given the enviable job of playing against the horrible 49ers. I would consider playing a pretty crappy quarterback facing San Francisco, so a quarterback with five touchdowns in his last two games is an easy pick. Anquan Boldin is getting healthy, giving a big boost to an already effective passing attack.

Matt Schaub @ CLE: In the three games Andre Johnson played, Schaub had five touchdowns and a single interception. The rest of the season provided two TDs and five interceptions. Do you think he missed his explosive wide receiver? With Johnson back in the fold and a porous Cleveland defense on the docket, Schaub will post some excellent numbers.

David Garrard v. BUF: I’ve never been much a Garrard fan and this season has certainly justified my skepticism. Regardless of his talent (which I am still not sold on), he has no receivers and plays in a run-first system. But there are two reasons for optimism this week. First, he finally seems to be getting comfortable as an NFL quarterback, looking pretty darned good last week. More importantly, the Bills are coming to town. They suck.

Going Out On a Limb:

Vinny Testaverde v. NO: The David Carr era is over in Carolina, much to the disappointment of no one. Coach John Fox made it clear that Carr will not come anywhere near the field on game days unless the 44-year old starter gets injured. With Steve Smith healthy and the ‘Aints up next, Vinny should be able to put up some great numbers and is available in most leagues.

Grab A Clipboard:

Daunte Culpepper @ KC: I recently heard a Dolphins fan lamenting the fact his team let Culpepper get away. Considering what Culpepper did to his old team Week Four, that regret is understandable. For fantasy purposes though, Culpepper has been a train wreck. He has been inconsistent and injury-prone while doing just enough to keep himself on the fringes of fantasy relevance. If we take out the Miami game, Culpepper has three touchdowns and seven turnovers. He is junk.

Brodie Croyle v. OAK: With Priest Holmes lost for the season (and beyond), the Chiefs will be forced to start Kolby Smith, who has ten rushes for a huge 19 yards. Ironically, the Oakland defense will be working to defend the pass and daring Kansas City to try running on them with the rookie. While it may be a boost to Croyle’s confidence that the Raiders are more concerned about him than the KC running game, it has much more to do with how horrible that running game is likely to be than any particular talent of Croyle’s.

A.J. Feeley @ NE: Desperate Donovan McNabb owners are currently giving Feeley an appraising eye, wondering if he might be worth a start. Considering how completely average he looked against an atrocious Miami defense last week, I would hope not. Now he gets to travel to the den of the lion and play the Patriots on their home turf. Um….no.

Philip Rivers v. BAL: The Ravens’ secondary has been picked on for a number of weeks and represent a decent match up. Considering how poorly the San Diego offense has recently played, I would still wait another week to see if they can right the ship before counting on their quarterback. His numbers over the last three weeks: one touchdown and seven turnovers. Ouch.

Jason Campbell @ TB: He has had five touchdowns over the last two weeks while playing some decent defenses in Dallas and Philadelphia. Looking over the rankings for this week on various sites, I was shocked by how many “experts” have him listed well up their rankings. Don’t buy it. Tampa Bay has been flying below the radar all year, but is playing some great ball.

Running Backs