-593x356.jpg)
Matt Barkley's shoulder separation he suffered at the tale end of his last collegiate season with USC will stop him from throwing at the NFL combine in Indianapolis according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.
The news that Barkley won't be throwing later this week isn't surprising to anyone, but it raises an important question. How will it effect his draft status come April?
To answer that question, you have to address Barkley's slide down experts' draft boards. The general consensus around analyst circles seems to be that he's a mid-first to early-second round pick.
That being the case, you have to take into account the quarterback driven nature of today's NFL, which will drive his draft stock back towards the top end of the first round.
In all reality, the fact that Matt Barkley won't throw this week won't make a big difference in his draft stock. Scouts will see him throw at a later date. Sure, Barkley will likely be throwing to familiar target, but the end result will be the same. On top of that, teams have access to hours upon hours of game film from Barkley's time with USC.
Sure, Matt Barkley's draft stock has been on a downward trend since the beginning of his 2012 campaign with the Trojans, but he's still the second best quarterback option in April's draft. He may not be a top ten pick at this point, but not throwing at the combine won't drop kick him out of the first round. I still fully expect to see him off the board somewhere between tenth and twentieth overall. His continued recuperation is a hassle, but it's not a huge setback in the long run.
