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After a report from ESPN’s Josina Anderson surfaced last week that former NFL wide receiver and returner Percy Harvin wanted to return to the NFL, folks began to wonder if a team would give him a shot.
It appears that he’s been keeping in shape, at the very least.
Breaking: Former 1st-rounder, FA WR Percy Harvin tells me: “I’m ready to return to the NFL. I thought I was done, but that itch came back. I’ve been training w/a former Olympian. My body is feeling good. Mentally I’m better. My family is good. The timing is right.” He's 185lbs. pic.twitter.com/NQaadbF73B
— ig: josinaanderson (@JosinaAnderson) April 22, 2020
After all, the former Florida standout had an illustrious career in Minnesota from 2009-12 before going to Seattle and winning a Super Bowl with the Seahawks in the 2013-14 season.
Though, he left the league after the 2016 season and hasn’t been productive with a team since 2015 with the Buffalo Bills. He’s about to turn 32 and hasn’t played in a good while, but the interest in what he could do in a return is sure to interest some teams. Maybe he’s still got some gas left in the tank.
Per NBC Sports’ Peter King, one of those teams could be the Atlanta Falcons.
He wrote in his Football Morning in America column about Harvin’s return, and pegged the Falcons as a hypothetical destination for him to come back to.
I think if I were a coach with interest in buying a lottery ticket for an offensive weapon, and if Percy Harvin would be willing to sign for zero guaranteed money, I’d bring him to camp . . . if there is a camp before the 2020 season. Some issues: Harvin—Josina Anderson reported he wants to make a comeback—will be 32 this fall, he has not played since 2016, and he played only 306 snaps combined in 2015 and ’16. I still would sign him. Remember his 87-yard kick-return TD in the Super Bowl six years ago? Key phrase: “six years ago.” But at his best, he was one of the two or three most dangerous weapons in the game, Tyreek Hill before there was a Tyreek Hill. Intriguing, and at 32, Harvin would be an interesting trial for some team. Steelers? Patriots? Falcons?
Seeing him name drop a team like Atlanta certainly makes sense. Harvin and Dan Quinn were together in Seattle for a brief stint, and both have ties to Florida, where Quinn was a defensive coordinator for two years after Harvin’s time as a Gator.
If the Falcons were to sign Harvin, it’d be curious to see how it’d go. The team is already taking a flier on former Vikings wideout Laquon Treadwell, who has struggled to find his footing since being drafted in the first round in 2016. Would the team take another chance on a guy who needs a fresh start (or in this case, is looking to revitalize a start in general)?
We’ll see how this progresses. King’s name drop could just be a guess, but he’d at least probably make an educated, informed one. If the team did sign him, it’d probably be for a veteran minimum contract and an extended tryout phase to see if he’s still got it.
If he did and somehow contributed to the offense this year, it’d be an unexpected boost and a fun thing to watch. But that’s a lot of “ifs.” We’ll see if any additional smoke comes with Harvin and any possible interest from Atlanta for his comeback.