How desperate were the Seattle Seahawks to get rid of Percy Harvin? We’ve already heard tons of stories that paint Harvin as a villain. There have even been reports that the Seahawks were going to release Harvin if they couldn’t find a trade partner for him. But did they sell themselves short for the sake of keeping the dynamic wide receiver away from a contender? It’s certainly possible.
The Jets traded a conditional sixth-round pick for Harvin. Considering Seattle gave up a first-rounder for him last year and signed him to a five-year, $64 million contract extension, most people were shocked Pete Carroll and company gave up Harvin so cheaply. Perhaps the Seahawks could have gotten more for the 26-year-old if they involved a team like the New England Patriots.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports that the Seahawks never contacted the Patriots to gauge their interest in Harvin. You could argue that they didn’t want to trade him to a team they could wind up facing in the playoffs, but Seattle supposedly tried to acquire Julius Thomas from the Denver Broncos. Then again, the Seahawks probably would have been willing to risk facing Harvin in February if it meant getting arguably the NFL’s best red zone threat in return.
Had the Seahawks called the Patriots, you have to think Bill Belichick would have listened. For starters, he has a close relationship with Urban Meyer, Harvin’s former coach at Florida. Belichick has also always been willing to take on troubled players — Corey Dillion, Randy Moss and Chad Ochocinco are a few examples. The Patriots gave up a sixth-round pick for Tennessee Titans linebacker Akeem Ayers on Tuesday, so it would be a shock if they weren’t willing to part with a lot more if it meant adding a player like Harvin to an offense that has struggled at times this season.
At the very least, I’m sure Belichick would have been interested in driving up the price on the rival Jets. If the Seahawks weren’t in such a rush to dump Harvin, they could have used the Patriots as a bargaining chip. The fact that they didn’t bother is further proof that they were desperate to cut ties with the former Florida star.
