Percy's future w/ Vikings looking uncertain

[HardcoreVikesFan]

I really do not Harvin to leave...

However, should he leave, I will understand.

[Rus]

Jarius Wright is NOT Percy Harvin. There's a big difference in pure explosiveness. They have "similar" body types, but Harvin just looks like a better built dude all around.

Not taking anything away from Wright, but I've never seen a screen to Wright look as dangerous as a screen to Harvin. Harvin also has very underrated hands. The guy is the surest pass-catcher on the team...people talk about his athleticism, but the guy has surprisingly good hands considering that he's usually stuck creating separation and cutting at a ball against taller dbs. He's probably a better downfield blocker, too...though the jury's still out on Wright. I can only hope that if the Vikings ARE looking at moving Harvin, they move him for a fairly high draft pick. They're probably not going to get a player that values out as high as Harvin due to Harvin's reputation and injury history. When that guy isn't hurt, he's one of the best weapons in the league. The front office moves him, it's because they have a serious problem that they can't work out and they're getting what they can before he walks.

[VikeMike]

Wow. I am not sure what the big fuss is.

Maybe Percy is angry about being put on IR ... Maybe not. Maybe he is getting antsy about his contract status ... Maybe not. Maybe there's a rift with the coach ... Maybe not. Maybe he doesn't like broccoli, maybe he does.

I don't find it shocking that he's not at Winter Park after being shut down for the year.

Maybe there are Vikings fans out there panicking about something completely not worth worrying about.

[Viva la Vikings]

If we had to trade him, What would you guys want in return for him?

[BGM]

But if people want to bury their heads in the sand, be my guest! Just don't act all upset when they do move him for whatever they can get, because they SEE what kind of cancer he is for this team!

Demi, it's always interesting to read your posts, and though we disagree more often than not, I have always respected your opinion and love for the Vikes. But, honestly, this is "tin foil hat" stuff. There is no reputable or confirmed report that Harvin is in any way the "cancer" you seem to believe that he is. I just don't understand your ongoing disdain for Harvin and your willingness to make rumors and speculation into reality. But then, there are players that I have disliked for no specific reason, too, so maybe that's it.

[HornedMessiah]

If we had to trade him, What would you guys want in return for him?

It would have to be a first round pick, so maybe a playoff team at the back end of round one would bite (or at least early round two). It's not unreasonable, he's one of the most explosive players in the league and his best years are still ahead of him. Hopefully everything is fine and he remains a Viking for years to come. If they can draft a talented WR or go out and get one in free agency, next year's receiver group won't look so bad.

Has Percy done any interviews or any twitter activity since being put on the IR? I guess we could take it as a good sign that he hasn't been saying dumb crap in the media.

[headless_norseman]

Never physically attacked a coach being a big one. Never berated a coach in front of the entire team on the sideline. Never missed repeated practices because of mystery illnesses. Never asked for a trade (allegedly).
Based on a story about a trade before the season even starts. And then the sideline spat, and then the reported exchange with Frazier in the training room or wherever it was. Based on having to be separated from his previous coach and reportedly throwing a weight at him. Based on choking his college position coach (allegedly).

This isn't speeding, this isn't being late for a meeting. This is stuff that tears teams apart. And these were just the stories that made their way to reporters. Does anything think it stops there? That these are the only instances?

Great, he plays hard, he's a great player, how much does that matter compared to the rift something like a player repeatedly causing issues with coaches? Or shutting himself down in practices? Or not buying into the offense?

Championship teams don't put up with this garbage anymore, and neither should the Vikings! SKOL VIKINGS! DOWN WITH BIG HEADED MALCONTENTS!

We lost good players because Denny Green had rifts, and then we found out too late Denny wasn't worth it. Now he's fishing for a living. Even though Frazier ain't no Denny.

[Demi]

Even though Frazier ain't no Denny.

Yeah every indication is he's the most laid back down to earth guy there is. And Harvin still manages to have multiple spats with him!

But, honestly, this is "tin foil hat" stuff.

If I wanted tin foil hat stuff, I'd go find Jared's comments on the team buying in and see if maybe they were made after Percy was put on IR! I'd find the audio of Ponder's slip of the tongue when he said "Now that Percy's "gone"" and then used a different word. Reported incidents with three seperate coaches is tin foil hat stuff? Along with a handful of other issues that have been reported? I'd worry less about my tin foil hat, and more about all the purple glasses around here!!!

And when this all blows over and he gets extended I hope you won't act upset

I have faith Spielman and Frazier are smart enough not to do something so foolish. Yeah he might stay if they throw a bag of top 5 receiver money at him. But that won't change the attitude he's had his entire career! (might also mean the issues aren't as bad or they've made some ground. Which is fine, as long as the guy starts acting like a member of a team and not a prima donna!!!)

[DanAS]

You're welcome. It's easy to make a mistake like that when typing.
Vikings fans have a knack for expecting the worst... let's hope in this case it's unjustified.

Actually, given all the frustrating season-ending games over the decades, I think Vikings Nation is INCREDIBLY upbeat.

Seriously -- compare us to the fans of other hard-luck franchises. It's night and day. Relatively speaking, hope springs eternal with this crew. We are, after all, #2 to the Cubs on Bill Simmons' list of all time hard-luck franchises.

[dead_poet]

Percy Harvin - WR - Vikings

Coach Leslie Frazier downplayed recent speculation that Percy Harvin won't be back in Minnesota for the 2013 season due to his personal problems with the franchise.

"I don't see any reason why Percy wouldn't be back with us," said Frazier. "He should be." It's a newsworthy quote considering Frazier's reported frosty relationship with Harvin. The Vikings are in for a stormy offseason with their star receiver if they don't reach agreement on a lucrative extension entering a contract year. The alternative is to shop Harvin around, though he's too valuable to settle for the expected second-round pick price tag.
Source: Minneapolis Star-Tribune

[VikingLord]

Then you're never going to be convinced. Because no teammate or coach is every going to come out and say anything. All we get is reports that leak out, reports that are never refuted, reports from sources that were likely there given the specifics involved.

But if people want to bury their heads in the sand, be my guest! Just don't act all upset when they do move him for whatever they can get, because they SEE what kind of cancer he is for this team!

All we get is a guy who is never held out on a series for disciplinary reasons, never fined, never suspended, never sulks during plays or games, never leaves the field early...

I'm not burying my head in the sand. Quite to the contrary, I'm looking at things I can see with my own eyes and hear with my own ears and nothing past a sideline exchange with Frazier suggests Harvin is a problem (and even that is hardly extraordinary).

You are discounting that and over-weighting things that come from "un-named sources, sports writers, and "people who were there" while ignoring the above facts that everyone who watches this team can agree upon.

I'm not sure which of us has the blinders on, but if Harvin is not a Viking (and one of their best players again) at the start of next season I will be shocked.

[A.D_blazing]

Christian Ponder isn’t sure whether Percy Harvin will be back

“You know, he busts his butt all the time when he was here,” Ponder said of Harvin. “When he was out on the field, no one worked harder than him. Obviously, everyone saw how tough he was physically and mentally. And he had a lot of leadership qualities. He was a good teammate.”

He was a good teammate.

Yep. Percy’s gone.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... l-be-back/

There's more at the link.

Where there's smoke, there's fire.

[Mothman]

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... l-be-back/

There's more at the link.

Where there's smoke, there's fire.

Or at least plenty of rumor-mongering.

Florio's got nothing. He's analyzing the tense Ponder used? Give me a break. First of all, Ponder mixed tenses his first comment ("he busts his butt all the time when he was here" so that should indicate just how reliable this sort of "analysis" is...

More importantly, Ponder is probably using the past tense because he's talking about the past, referring to Harvin's attitude and performance earlier this season.

This is getting ridiculous. It's obvious that the only people who have a clue regarding Harvin's future are Harvin, Spielman and whatever insiders in both camps will be involved in deciding whether he'll play for the Vikings or not. Until they either come to an agreement or make a trade, we might as well consult psychics and read tea leaves to try to figure out what's going on. It would be as reliable as what the rumor-mongering, pot-stirring press has to offered up so far.

Let's just see how this plays out instead of jumping at shadows.

[dead_poet]

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... l-be-back/

There's more at the link.

Where there's smoke, there's fire.

He's still under contract. Ponder has no idea if he'll be here or not. I doubt the front office knows for sure (though if I were to make an educated guess they'd like him to be here for the long term). It's a little absurd to believe that word leaked out that Harvin is for sure going to be traded.

[Eli]

Wow. Looks grim. I wonder what really happened for things to have gone so bad.