Matt Barkley drafted: USC’s Matt Barkley was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth round on Saturday at 98th overall, it was reported.
Before last season with USC, Barkley was viewed as a top prospect and potentially the No. 1 overall pick in the draft but his stock dropped rapidly.
NFL.com spoke with Eagles coach Chip Kelly, who is known to favor quarterbacks who are mobile, a trait that Barkley does not exactly possess.
“I believe that’s an added bonus, not a precursor to what we do,” Kelly said of quarterback quickness.
The Eagles currently have five quarterbacks on the roster after the Barkley trade: Michael Vick, Nick Foles, Dennis Dixon and G.J. Kinne.
Kelly stressed there is “no reason not to go to camp” with five quarterbacks.
Barkley is only the fourth quarterback selected through 98 picks this year — one in each round so far. His decision to play his senior season was costly for Barkley, who would have commanded a million-dollar salary had he gone in the opening round of 2012.
His weak performance last season, combined with the recent history of NFL inconsistency by Trojans QBs such as Matt Leinart and Mark Sanchez, hurt Barkley’s standing.
Still, Kelly is familiar with him from their days in the Pac-12.
National champion Alabama, which had four players chosen previously — three in the first round — saw linebacker Nico Johnson go to Kansas City with the pick after Barkley was taken.
Still left on the board were such college stars as Oklahoma QB Landry Jones and South Carolina running back Marcus Lattimore, who is coming off a severe knee injury.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
