Matt Barkley to announce decision at 1pm

USC quarterback Matt Barkley will announce his decision on whether he’s turning pro at 1pm today. Early speculation suggests he will be staying with the Trojans for his senior year. Tony Pauline at SI.com is also reporting that Robert Griffin III and Landry Jones could alsoopt to remain in college – three decisions that would completely change the complexion of the 2012 draft.

For starters, will an unexpected player declare sensing an opportunity with so few quarterbacks available? Could a guy like Geno Smith (QB, West Virginia) jump ship with so many teams in need of a quarterback? Will this benefit second and third tier prospects like Ryan Tannehill and Austin Davis? Where does it leave the list of teams searching for a franchise quarterback, including the Seahawks?

Barkley will announce his intentions at 9pm, but our sources have revealed he didn’t receive a favorable review from the draft committee. Although he was told he would be a high pick, the committee highlighted areas to work on. His skill grade wasn’t particularly high.

There’s no doubt that Barkley would’ve been a high first round pick, but it appears a combination of factors could’ve led him to a decision to stay at USC. The Trojans will be Bowl eligible next year, Barkley will be among the favorites for the Heisman Trophy and he’ll have a realistic shot at being the #1 pick in 2013.

19 Comments

  1. AlexHawk

    DAMN I hope he does declare without him there is a serious issue at QB this year what looked like a strong

  2. AlexHawk

    DAMN I hope he does declare without him there is a serious issue at QB this year what looked like a strong QB class may get a whole lot weaker and if I was Landry Jones I would be declaring asap

  3. Colin

    RG3 stock just went up.

  4. TJ

    It would be quite something if Barkley, Griffin, and Jones all stayed at school. That would almost certainly lead to another year with Jackson and another offseason of building the roster up at every position other than QB. As much as Seattle needs to draft QB this year, if there isn’t one available, there isn’t one available. Instead of trading up, I could see Carroll/Schneider trading down, picking a developmental QB a little later, and gathering more draft capital for next year. That is a scary thought. I don’t really want to go through another season of focusing on wins/losses in terms of their impact on draft position. I just want to enjoy the games.

  5. Fudwamper

    I just don’t see how Barkley gets a non 1st round grade from the committee.

    From my understanding that is all they tell a player on where they will be drafted as high as the first round, as high as the second round and so forth.

    With so many people leaving USC I just don’t see him staying.

  6. Meat

    Either way, the Hawks will remain in the middle of the rounds just far enough away from a franchise QB. I don’t think Seattle would trade up in the top 5-8 for some reason. If RGIII and Barkley don’t declare it will be an intersting draft.

  7. Misfit74

    “Pete Thamel of the New York Times reports USC QB Matt Barkley has informed teammates that he’s staying in school for the 2012 season.
    The official announcement is expected to be made at 4:00 ET.”

    https://twitter.com/#!/PeteThamelNYT/status/149944694892273664

  8. Misfit74

    I have to say that considering our draft-position this year that this could be good news. Still, I have to think that GM/Carroll have a plan and it likely had Barkley out of reach. Can only guess, though.

    This sure would boost RGIII’s stock off the charts.

  9. Turp

    Barkley confirmed he is returning.

  10. AlexHawk

    NOOOOO staying heard you can’t really blame him but man thats bad for us

  11. Alex

    Yep, well. I think the Hawks should take a closer look at other QBs like Austin Davis. I’m pretty sure this all but guaranteed RG3 a spot in the top 5 if he declares.

  12. D

    Darn, the future is now.

    Oh well, stay in school kid…

  13. meat

    Nooooooooooo

    That is all I can say now.

  14. Michael (CLT)

    Huge boon for Seattle. Sell the 1st for one next year, if you can. Be the Browns with the money play in 2013.

  15. Michael (CLT)

    Go Chargers!!! Go Pack!!!

  16. Mike in OC

    I applaud Barkley’s decision…I’ve been telling people around me that I think he will return because of unfinished business – bowl game (National Championship?), possible Heisman, higher draft status after another year of polishing. This will also pretty much guarantee his being the Number 1 pick in the 2013 draft.

    I have a question, though; probably a stupid one, but one that I have to ask: If Minnesota ends up with the number one pick this year , how likely of a scenario would it be for us to try trade up to get Luck? It seems to me that we are pretty well set in just about every position right now and only need depth, which Pete and John seem pretty adept at obtaining in Free Agency and late-round/undrafted picks. So why not offer all of our earlier picks (Rounds 1 – 3, or 4) and maybe a 2013 pick, to get Luck?

    By the way, I say Minnesota, because I don’t think we want to do this if the Rams get the first pick.

  17. JC

    Oddly enough I think this *might* be a good thing for the Hawks. Two of the teams seen as challengers will back QBs in the draft (assuming RG3 declares). If you think Payton Manning is playing somewhere other than Lucas Oil Stadium, and I do, that’s a third team. Some GM will be desperate or foolish, or both, to sign Matt Flynn to a contact al la Matt Cassel. That’s four quarterback needy teams who will be out of the running next year. Perhaps five if someone falls in love with Ryan Tennehill and thinks he is the answer.

    The Hawks could spend this draft on impact and explosive players on either side of the ball and spin future draft capital to move up the board in 2013. Whether or not they have a shot at Barkley specificly is a legit question. However, that draft could have the likes of Tyler Wilson, Tyler Bray, Aaron Murray, Jeff Tuel (haha, that’s for you, Cuzzo) so who knows.

    Look at me, the rosy optimist.

    Disregard everything I just said if Pete and John reup on Tavaris Jackson…so much for optimism.

  18. Kip Earlywine

    You can’t really blame him for going back after hearing a (completely bogus) “low” draft grade. He’ll have about as much pole position on the 2013 #1 pick as Luck has this year. If we had known a month ago that he had gotten a low grade, this decision wouldn’t have come as any surprise at all.

    This is bad news for the Seahawks because not only does it mean drafting Barkley this year is no longer possible, but it probably won’t be possible next year either if he goes #1. It also waters down the 2012 quarterback field and forces them to make a big trade up for a high risk QB in RG3.

    This is bad news for us. But I guess in a sense its fair: Barkley really is a #1 overall deserving guy, and now he’ll have a chance to earn it.

  19. Kip Earlywine

    I think the idea of a draft committee is pretty dumb. Even if they have very good inside sources with accurate information about how every front office views a prospect, the fact is that a lot of FO’s haven’t even really started digging through tape extensively yet and “big boards” change substantially from December to April.

    Even the best information right now has a strong chance of being misleading in the end. I wonder what grade that draft committee gave Jake Locker or Blaine Gabbert or Christian Ponder this time last year?

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