2013 NFL Mock Draft: Matt Barkley Or Geno Smith?

The Kansas City Chiefs appear to be on their way toward securing the first pick in the 2012 NFL Draft and that means it is time to start talking QBs.

It is sad that with eight games to go we have to begin focusing on the draft but the Chiefs haven’t given us any indication that they’re going to make the rest of this NFL season interesting.

The Chiefs literally control their own destiny as far as securing the top pick is concerned. With just one win this season, the Chiefs have the worst record in football. Their primary competition right now is the Carolina Panthers, currently 1-6 and the Jacksonville Jaguars, also 1-6. The Cleveland Browns and New Orleans Saints are also in the mix at 2-5.

Now we can likely rule out the Saints. I find it hard to believe, bad as they’ve been, that a team with Drew Brees at QB will have the worst record in football by season’s end. As for the Browns, they appear to be trending in the right direction. Rookie QB Brandon Weeden has shown some nice flashes and they are getting a number of key players back on defense. Cleveland is likely to win a few more. Besides, the Chiefs play the Browns later this season. A loss for KC would pretty much kill Cleveland’s chances of having the top pick.

That leaves the Panthers and Jaguars. The good news is that the Panthers aren’t much of a threat. Even if they should finish with the worst record in the league, they already have Cam Newton on board. Plus, KC and Carolina play one another in December.

As for the Jags, they could potentially be problematic. They’re terrible and their only win came earlier this season against the Colts. Indy and Andrew Luck are playing much better now, however and even though Jacksonville will play them again, the result could be very different.

There is a good chance KC and Jacksonville could be picking 1-2.

Nobody wants to see more losing for the Chiefs but if the organization is going to finally draft a franchise QB, more losing is what they need.

But who is the franchise QB in this draft?

Currently, the top two candidates are Matt Barkley of USC and Geno Smith of West Virginia. Smith is the flashier of the two, having put up some gaudy numbers earlier this season but as of late his performance has slipped a bit. Barkley has been more consistent.

Current stats for both:

Smith: YDS TD INT
2417 26 2

Barkley: YDS TD INT
2266 25 8

The latest mock draft from Walter Football has the Chiefs picking #1 and taking Barkley. They have Smith going to the Jags at #2.

We still have a long way to go and a lot could change, but right now Smith and Barkley are the front runners.

What do you think, Addicts? Do you have a favorite in this race?