5 breakout fantasy football stars to pick up for Week 17

3. Top Fantasy Football Pickups For Week 17 – Carolina Panthers QB Sam Darnold

A key late-season injury for fantasy football purposes is the shoulder issue for Jalen Hurts, who missed Week 16’s tilt against the Dallas Cowboys and will likely be out for Week 17 as well. A lot of Hurts owners likely dropped their backup quarterback after the Eagles’ bye week, leading to some frenzied streaming this week.

For those owners, along with anyone else seeking a quarterback upgrade for championship week, the best streaming option on the board is Sam Darnold. The Carolina Panthers have been much more efficient on offense with Darnold under center and he produced his best fantasy day of the season against the red-hot Detroit Lions on Saturday.

Darnold completed 15-of-22 passes for 250 yards and a touchdown while rushing for another 37 and a second score in Carolina’s 37-23 victory over the Lions. The win gives Carolina control of its own destiny in the NFC South and they can assume control of the division with a win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 17.

Tampa Bay’s pass defense is suspect and allows the 14th most points to opposing quarterbacks, making Darnold a solid streaming play for Week 17. Darnold is rostered in just seven percent of leagues and could be a title-winner if he puts together another strong performance for the Panthers.