Looking Back At The Dominance Of Percy Harvin

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Percy Harvin was one of the best speed threats the NFL has ever had. He doesn’t get talked about as much in todays game. For those who may not know who he is, a quick synopsis. Harvin was first round pick by Minnesota in 2009 playing collegiately at Florida. He was also a track and field star as a child. In three years at Florida, he had 133 catches for 1,929 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also ran the ball 194 times for 1,852 yards and 19 touchdowns. His 32 touchdowns is still a school record for TDs by a receiver in his tenure in the swamp. He averaged 9.5 yards per carry as a running back and 11.6 yards overall (running back, receiver, return man). He was the first player in University of Florida history to rush for 100 yards and have 100 yards receiving in the same game against Vanderbilt in 2007.

The OG

Harvin was doing everything Tyreek Hill, Deebo Samuel, and Cordarrelle Patterson do now before it was cool. It didn’t matter where he was. If he got into the open space, it was over. Who can forget his career moment? He opened the second half of the Super Bowl against Denver with a kickoff return for a touchdown. Despite that, Seattle chose not to resign him after the 13-14 season. He retired after the 2016 season after stints with the Jets and Bills. His speed made him the ultimate weapon X and he definitely kept defensive coordinators up at night. It helps that he ran a 4.41 40 yard dash. He finished his NFL career with the following stats:

4,026 receiving yards

22 touchdown catches

927 rushing yards

4,127 return yards

5 return touchdowns

Copycat League

As mentioned before, there are some players in the league today that follow Harvin’s lead. Teams are now constantly looking for a jack of all trades. This didn’t just start with Taysom Hill. Even Jabrill Peppers and Laviska Shenault played all over the field in college. Harvin hinted at a comeback bid after being out of the league for three years but has not made anything official. He has nothing left to prove, and he has left his fingerprints all over the game of football. This has given more players opportunities as a result, and that is as good a legacy as any.

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PLUS, the return of one of my first projects as a writer. Roster and draft class breakdowns for all 32 NFL teams are coming soon!