It is the championship week of fantasy football and this is for all the marbles. Here are five quarterbacks to consider starting in your fantasy leagues, if you’re lucky enough to still be playing.
MORE: RIVALS FANTASY FOOTBALL HOME | YAHOO SPORTS FANTASY SPORTS HOME
*****
Taylor Cornelius, Oklahoma State
The Oklahoma State quarterback is now the third-leading scorer in fantasy leagues, yet owners still don’t believe in him since he’s only owned at a 45-percent clip. That means Cornelius could be available for the championship round after throwing for 338 yards with five touchdowns and two interceptions in the Cowboys’ stunning comeback over West Virginia this past weekend. I will grant that TCU’s defense has been solid this season, so playing Cornelius could be a risk, but this Oklahoma State offense is humming and should put up points.
Daniel Jones, Duke
Jones finished 24 of 43 passing for only 158 yards and no touchdowns in Clemson’s 35-6 win over Duke this past weekend, which does not inspire a lot of faith in the Blue Devils' offense, but this upcoming game should be much different. Wake Forest’s pass defense is downright awful, allowing more than 285 passing yards per game and giving up 24 passing TDs this season. Jones is a threat throwing the ball and picking up some yards on the ground, so Duke should be able to move the ball easily against the Demon Deacons.
Drew Lock, Missouri
Arkansas coach Chad Morris was fuming after the Razorbacks’ embarrassing 52-6 loss at Mississippi State on Saturday and said players and coaches need to be held accountable. The only problem is this Arkansas team is just not very good, with wins over only Tulsa and Eastern Illinois this season. The Razorbacks played LSU tough a couple weeks ago, but recently gave up 45 to Vanderbilt and Saturday’s game was a disaster. Missouri hung 50 on Tennessee on Saturday in Neyland Stadium, and Lock finished with 257 passing yards and two scores. He could have had more. Missouri should have a field day to close out the regular season.
Bryce Perkins, Virginia
Virginia has not beaten Virginia Tech since 2003, but this could definitely be the year because the Cavaliers have weapons on offense – mainly, Perkins throwing and running the ball – and the Hokies’ defense is uncharacteristically average this season. Virginia Tech is giving up 5.3 yards per carry, more than 208 rushing yards per game, and the Hokies have allowed 26 rushing TDs. Perkins threw for 217 yards and a touchdown, and rushed for a team-high 73 yards and a score in Virginia’s overtime loss to Georgia Tech this past weekend. Even if Virginia cannot beat Va Tech, the Cavaliers' QB should still put up nice numbers.
Manny Wilkins, Arizona State
One other name I considered for this space was Oregon’s Justin Herbert, since the Ducks are playing lowly Oregon State, and if you can get Herbert in your starting lineup by all means do it, but he’s owned in more than 90 percent of leagues. Wilkins, owned in only 38 percent of leagues, is coming off a tough loss to Oregon, so he should be ready for prime time against the in-state rival. Arizona was completely embarrassed at Washington State on Saturday night, giving up 55 first-half points, 69 total, and allowing the Cougars to throw for 482 yards and seven TDs. It could have been even worse. I don’t expect Arizona to fix all of its problems in one week.
