Today USC quarterback and highly touted NFL prospect Matt Barkley announced that he will be returning to play his senior season for the Trojans instead of declaring for the NFL Draft in April. This decision has caused mock drafters and NFL general managers to rework their draft boards as Barkley was set to be a sure fire top ten pick. The consensus number one choice this year is Stanford quarterback Andre Luck. Barkley was in the conversation as the second best quarterback along with Baylor’s Robert Griffin. Luck is a rare talent that was not going to be challenged as the top pick. I am sure Barkley saw this and knew that in any other year he would have had an opportunity to be first over all. Now with his decision to go back and play another year at USC Barkley will be the consensus number one pick heading into the 2012 season. The challenge for the Trojan’s star now will be if he still sits atop everyone’s draft boards in April of 2013. There have been many players who were highly regarded prospects who chose to go back and play their senior season. Some, most notably Jake Locker, watched their draft stock plummet, while others, including Peyton Manning, used that year to only reaffirm the scout’s opinions. Only time will tell which group Barkley will become apart of. But for now you can write Matt Barkley at the top of your 2013 NFL mock draft.
Matt Barkley Will Not Enter The 2012 NFL Draft
