Percy Harvin has had a number of problems with the Minnesota Vikings over the past couple of seasons, many of which have remained private while others were publicized. Over the weekend, a report surfaced indicating that Harvin had told the Vikings he no longer wants to play with them. Just a few days later, he was traded to the Seattle Seahawks.
All indications were that Harvin was heading for another holdout and was bound to become a headache. According to Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports, the final straw for the former Florida Gator and the team was that he had no confidence in quarterback Christian Ponder.
According to two sources, the straw that broke the Vikings’ back with Harvin is when he bemoaned the fact that quarterback Christian Ponder, a 2011 first-round pick, was not good enough. That came even though Ponder consistently fed Harvin the ball.
Harvin had 62 catches for 677 yards in eight-plus games last year before suffering a season-ending injury, so Ponder was giving him plenty of touches. That being said, Ponder’s play hit a rough patch in the middle of the season and he was largely inconsistent. No one would describe him as an elite quarterback, to say the least.
It’s also likely that Minnesota decided to deal Harvin because he is looking for a contract similar to the eight-year, $132 million deal Calvin Johnson signed with the Detroit Lions last season. Perhaps the Seahawks are willing to pay that kind of money to lock down a consistent difference-maker.
Now, it will be interesting to see if Harvin is happy in Seattle. This is a player who reportedly threatened to walk out on his team last year after hearing that a tight end from another team received a hefty contract extension. He also reportedly grabbed one of his Florida coaches by the neck during a disagreement in college, so a clear pattern of behavior has developed over the last several years. Time will tell if Pete Carroll can keep Percy happy.
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