Terrelle Pryor Is Starting For Oakland, Should He Start For Your Fantasy Football Team?

Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

Terrelle Pryor has been named the starter this week for the Oakland Raiders. Is he worthy of a start on your fantasy team?

I recently wrote about how garbage time all-stars can help you win your league. Oakland quarterback Terrell Pryor has leapfrogged Matt Flynn and earned the starter role in Oakland. The Raiders seem to be a team destined to put up some garbage time fantasy stats, but what should you expect from Pryor in terms of fantasy production?

Pryor said this summer that he never knew how to throw a football. That’s scary news for two reasons. The first is that this guy was a stud quarterback for Ohio State University. If I was a fan of the Buckeyes, I would be seriously questioning what exactly their quarterback “coach” was doing to justify his paycheck. The second scary thing about that is this guy was a stud quarterback in college who never knew how to throw the ball, meaning he must be a naturally gifted athlete. If an NFL quarterback is good enough to earn the starting spot who just learned to throw the ball, then there might be hope yet for Tim Tebow.

Pryor is a quarterback who will earn his fantasy money with his legs, like Tebow or Cam Newton. He is a better runner than Tebow, but nowhere near as good a passer as Newton. When the play breaks down, or he is forced from the pocket, he has the speed and agility to make some defenders miss and get some yardage. Think of Colin Kaepernick, Robert Griffin III or Russell Wilson, but without the throwing ability. Pryor should see plenty of run option style plays around the goal line, possibly playing the vulture role to Darren McFadden.

His throwing mechanics are obviously going to be a work in progress. With few receiving options, don’t expect any huge passing yardage games. His primary weapon in the air is Denairus Moore, a speedy receiver with questionable hands. Outside of Moore, there are no real viable options in the air attack, which obviously limits the upside of Pryor.

Oakland is not a good team, and Pryor will more than likely pick up some garbage time production. As we have seen before with these scramble, running quarterbacks, sooner or later defenses will make him use the arm and contain the legs. When that happens, Pryor’s fantasy value will plummet. Unless your league is deep or runs two quarterbacks, Pryor is not a viable fantasy option, and you should have better options available. You are going to get a low end QB2/3 with a limited ceiling.

As always, I welcome your comments. If you think I’m wrong, I’m willing to listen. Just back it up with some facts and solid evidence. Thanks for reading and good luck this season.

Dustin Manko is a contributing writer at Rant Sports.com. Follow him on Twitter @DustinManko, ”Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google