Did Matt Barkley Hurt His Draft Stock by Refusing to Throw at Combine?

Matt Barkley suffered a separated shoulder during the regular season for the USC Trojans. The former Trojan quarterback has been one of the better quarterbacks that USC has seen in the past decade, but with a tough senior season, all of the success in his first three seasons was somewhat overshadowed.

However, the shoulder injury that the Newport Beach-native suffered will prevent him from throwing in the upcoming NFL scouting combine.

This injury has been bothering him for the better part of three months now. The combine takes place this week in Indianapolis and is said to be the biggest barometer of where college players stand when the draft rolls around in April.

Barkley was a preseason Heisman favorite and one of the best quarterbacks in the country for the first half of the season. He underperformed, however, just as the Trojans did in 2012, while the team finished 7-6. The Trojans were also a preseason national title favorite and everything about the 2012 season left a bitter taste in USC’s mouth.

Will the declaration of Barkley not to throw at the combine hurt his draft stock?

In my opinion, no it won’t. The Trojans spent four years with the talented quarterback as he threw for 12,327 yards and 116 touchdowns. Those numbers alone should speak for itself as to Barkley’s throwing ability. He also completed over 60 percent of his passes at USC, an impressive number for a quarterback that threw the ball as much as he did.

This won’t hurt his stock at all. People know he can throw. People have seen his ability. He has also said he would throw at USC’s Pro Day on March 27 which will give people an indication of where his arm is at.

If anything, this will keep his draft stock the same– many are saying no quarterbacks will be drafted in the first round as it is, so Barkley really has nothing to lose.