As reported yesterday, the Minnesota Vikings struck a trade agreement with the Seattle Seahawks, sending disgruntled wide receiver Percy Harvin and getting three draft picks in return (Seattle’s first and seventh round picks this year and their third round pick in 2014). Under the circumstances, the Vikings got a very generous deal for the extremely talented player. Just a few weeks ago, the guessing among NFL writers seemed to be that Minnesota might be lucky to get just a third-round pick in exchange for Harvin’s services.
1500ESPN‘s Tom Pelissero:
One veteran starter told 1500ESPN.com on Monday the trade ” is genius.” Another said he’s happy for Harvin but Spielman did “a great job” getting so much value for a player much of the league thought the Vikings were desperate to dump.
Harvin had demanded trades. He had clashed with coaches. He had complained about the offense and the quarterback. He once stormed out over a disagreement about medication.
He was, and is, one of the NFL’s most dynamic players for 3 hours after Sunday. It’s the other 165 hours a week the Vikings had begun to fear having a basket case on their hands.
Dressing down mild-mannered coach Leslie Frazier on the sideline in Seattle and again at the team facility weeks later was just the most overt signal Harvin had worn out his welcome and probably wanted out anyway.
Leslie Frazier is reportedly the most even-tempered coach in the NFL: if you can’t get along with Frazier, you probably can’t get along with anyone. Harvin has had arguments and confrontations with his coaches at college and in the NFL, so it will be interesting to see how long he can go in Seattle before the cameras catch him on the sideline giving a coach a dressing-down (or chucking weights at him).
All that, and Spielman still found — or perhaps created — a marketplace and yielded a better return than most around the NFL expected.
“Vikes got very good return for (a) player with no future there,” one NFL personnel man said.
At the Daily Norseman, Arif Hasan looks at the difficulties in trying to find someone to replace Harvin:
It is unlikely that the Vikings will find another Percy Harvin. With a unique set of talents that allowed Harvin to be the only receiver in the MVP conversation after eight weeks (not even the record-setting Calvin Johnson could compete in the conversations NFL analysts had about potential MVPs).
It’s easy to see why Harvin is so well regarded by NFL observers:
Harvin has make-you-miss ability, both because of his elusiveness and deceptive strength. But he’s more than that. What he can do would fill a scouting report with incredulities. It’s difficult to cover his accomplishments without delving into hyperbole, but there’s so much about Harvin that makes him an impact player that will make him difficult to replace.
