There is no denying that Joseph Barksdale (Link) is one of the best pure talents in this year's NFL draft. Barksdale projects as a RT or even a serviceable LT. He has the measurables that the Oakland Raiders love because at 6'5 - 336 pounds he has been clocked at under 5.0 in the 40 and some say that he ran a 4.86.
The reason that some see him slipping to the 2nd round has more to do with his work ethic and motor questions. He hasn't shown the killer instinct that many look for in a First Round O-Line candidate.
I know what some of you are thinking, "The last Unmotivated 300 pounder that we selected from LSU is still spending Al's money and didn't perform anywhere near expectations".
In my opinion, Joseph Barksdale would be a fantastic pick in the 2nd Round, at this point. He is first round talent with a couple of question marks, which make him a viable option in the middle of the second round.
Follow the jump to read more about Joseph:
I have not heard anyone mention this, yet, but, Joseph graduated High School early and joined LSU after being named a High School All-American. Sometimes the more intelligent players in College are accused of not having a high enough motor and that may be the case with Barksdale.
CBS currently has him listed as the #9 OT prospect and they have him going in the third round. I am going out on a limb here and saying that he will impress at the Combine and be one of the Top rated O-Linemen available when the Raiders select.
A Five Star recruit coming out of High School, I think there is more to Barksdale than many scouts are seeing at this point and we all know that if we can get a 10 year starter on the O-line in this year's draft, we will be heading in the right direction.
Tomorrow, we will take a closer look at Demarcus Love (Link).