Should the Patriots trade for Percy Harvin? Pros and Cons
Percy Harvin's situation in Minnesota is getting uglier by the day.
The fourth-year receiver has requested a trade from the Vikings, NFL.com's Ian Rapoport confirmed Wednesday. This follows a day where Harvin hinted about multiple "problems" with the Vikings.
"I'll just put it this way -- it's a lot of different things that have to be sorted out," Harvin said. "Just haven't been real happy lately. So, we've got a couple things to work on. I'm here in the classroom, so we'll go from here."
Harvin has looked both great at times in the NFL. A lot of his greatest moments came when Brett Favre was at quarterback. Still, he had his best statistical season last year despite having limited playing time for most of the first half of the year
He has struggled with injuries and migraines in two out of his three years in the NFL but he has the kind of versatility that Bill Belichick loves.
Pros:
1. He would instantly improve the Patriots kick return game.
2. He gives the Patriots another legitimate threat in the passing game, as if they don't have enough already. In a dream scenaro you'd have Welker, Harvin, Lloyd, Gronk and Hernandez as your top passing targers. Wow. Would you even need to run the ball?
3. Speaking of running the ball, Harvin has also come out of the backfield as a Viking (he has three career rushing TDs). That would give Josh McDaniels unlimited opportunities for the crazy trick plays that he loves.
Cons:
1. The thing is, we don't know the cost of attaining him. You would think that Harvin would not come cheap, if the Vikings actually do trade him (which admittedly isn't likely, he's their only good receiver). They don't have much leverage though when the other team knows that player is demanding a trade and that usually drives the cost down.
2. Harvin's injury history is also something of concern. He was very limited at the beginning of the season in 2011 because the Vikings were concerned about his ribs. Which was very frustrating for me as an owner of him in fantasy!
3. You'd also have to consider that he wants a big paycheck if he's traded, which the Patriots probably couldn't really deliver. That is, unless they chose to pay Harvin over Welker. Now, that actually could make a lot of sense from one perspective (Harvin's younger and can play multiple positions) but it also sends a bad message to the locker room. That's something we know Belichick doesn't like to do, he also doesn't like to hand out many big contracts to players that haven't proven themselves in a Patriot uniform. I would rather have Welker.
Conclusion: No, they shouldn't. But what do you think? Comment below or let us know on facebook or twitter.
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