Crunch time in AIC Charity League

If the playoffs began today the semifinals would be No. 4 Scott Ian Mean Machine (6-5) versus No. 1 KWS Domination (9-2) and No. 3 Zakk Wylde Doom Crew (7-4) versus No. 2 Calabasas Clueless (7-4).

So that sets up a must-win game this week for league organizer Jerry Cantrell if his Aroma of Tacoma (5-6) is going to cling to its slim hopes of reaching the playoffs. Cantrell's Aroma faces Duff McKagan's Team McKagan D, which also needs a victory to break the logjam with the other 6-5 teams, Vinnie Paul's Team The Brickwall and Scott Ian's Mean Machine.

Meanwhile, Zakk Wylde's once powerful Doom Crew has lost two in a row and is in danger of sliding out of the final four and Matt Willig's Calabasas Clueless remains the hottest team with a four-game winning streak. And the former NFL player was letting his rivals know about it on the league's message board:

Matt Willig
Tue, Nov. 24, 6:41 PM
Watch out Rock Gods, the dumbass football guy is officially making a move!!!
It's about peaking at the right time!

Scott Ian
Wed, Nov. 25, 2:10 PM
We all knew! We all knew that you would be back here gloating again … death, taxes, and Willig tootin his horn. Yeah, you have done very well Matt …

Each participant in the Alice in Chains & Friends Fantasy Football Charity League will put up one valuable item for auction by the end of the season. The league champion will designate which charity receives the auction's proceeds.

Weekly updates on the Alice in Chains & Friends Fantasy Football Charity League, trash talk and interviews with the owners will be published on ESPN.com's The Life section throughout the season. Members of the league also will drop by SportsNation for occasional chats.

Here are the standings after Week 11, with a look ahead to this weekend's matchups (mouse over the photos for bios of the participants):

Alice in Chains & Friends Charity Fantasy Football League Standings

• Kenny Wayne Shepherd
  Place of birth: Shreveport, La. Age: 32 Fantasy football experience: Rookie Favorite team: Indianapolis Colts

  Personal: Shepherd cut his musical teeth opening for The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Bob Dylan, The Eagles and Van Halen.

• Jerry Cantrell

  Place of birth: Tacoma, Wash. Age: 43 Fantasy football experience: 5 years Favorite team: Seattle Seahawks/Pittsburgh Steelers

  Personal: Lead guitarist Cantrell's legacy with Alice In Chains includes 14 million albums sold, 19 Top 40 singles and six Grammy nominations.

• Scott Ian

  Place of birth: New York Age: 45 Fantasy football experience: Rookie Favorite team: New York Giants

  Personal: When Ian isn't playing guitar for Anthrax, he's schooling amateurs at the poker table.

• Vinnie Paul

  Place of birth: Abilene, Texas Age: 45 Fantasy football experience: 10 years Favorite team: Dallas Cowboys

  Personal: Paul, who formed Pantera with his late brother Dimebag Darrell, plays drums the way Ray Lewis hits people. In other words, hard.

• Zakk Wylde
  Place of birth: Bayonne, N.J. Age: 42 Favorite team: New York Giants

  Personal: Wylde landed the job of lead guitarist and co-songwriter for Ozzy Osbourne at the age of 19 and later founded Black Label Society.

• Kenny Aronoff

  Place of birth: Albany, N.Y. Age: 56 Fantasy football experience: 3 years Favorite team: Indianapolis Colts

  Personal: Aronoff has played drums for a who's who of rock legends, including Elton John, The Rolling Stones, Lynyrd Skynyrd and many more.

• Matt Willig
  Place of birth: Whittier, Calif. Age: 40 Fantasy football experience: 0 years Favorite team: No favorite, but "I do like to watch the Carolina Panthers every Sunday, especially to watch my boy, [left tackle] Jordan Gross, play."

  Personal: One of two non-musicians in the league, Willig spent 12 years in the NFL with six different teams.

• Duff McKagan
  Place of birth: Seattle Age: 45 Fantasy football experience: Rookie Favorite team: Seattle Seahawks

  Personal: Before playing bass for Velvet Revolver, McKagan spent 13 years with Guns N' Roses, so he's ready for anything.

• Mike Inez
  Place of birth: San Fernando, Calif. Age: 43 Fantasy football experience: 6 years Favorite team: Oakland Raiders

  Personal: Before playing bass guitar for Alice In Chains, Inez was rocking arenas with Ozzy Osbourne.

• Matthew Berry
  Place of birth: Denver Age: "Late 30s" Fantasy football experience: 17 years Favorite team: Washington Redskins

  Personal: Berry, who wouldn't disclose any musical talents, is ESPN.com's Talented Mr. Roto and a five-time award winner from the Fantasy Sports Writers Association.