Former Pro Bowl wide receiver Percy Harvin, who has not played in the NFL since 2016, told Josina Anderson of ESPN he is planning to return to the NFL and has been training with a former Olympian.
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
Harvin’s agent, Alvin Keels, also told Anderson that he has handled calls from teams looking to add a veteran receiver, and that the pandemic has caused some teams to turn toward established veteran players, like Harvin.
WR Percy Harvin’s new agent Alvin Keels told me just now he’s already getting to work fielding calls with teams looking for a WR with NFL experience during an offseason training period impacted by the CoVID19 pandemic. pic.twitter.com/9yCDSLclUL
— ig: josinaanderson (@JosinaAnderson) April 22, 2020
Harvin was famously acquired by the Seahawks in March of 2013, after they gave up a first round pick, a seventh round pick and a fourth round pick in the 2014 draft.
Harvin only played in one regular season game for Seattle that season, hauling in one reception for 17 yards, although he did have one of the most famous plays in franchise history – a kickoff returned for a touchdown to begin the second half of Seattle’s 43-8 win over the Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII.
Harvin was eventually shipped to the Jets after five games with Seattle in 2014, ending a tenure littered with injuries and disappointment, save for one epic play.
After a half year in New York and two injury-plagued seasons in Buffalo, Harvin was out of the league by age 28.
Now, he will look to catch on with a team this summer at age 31, hoping to reclaim some of the magic that made him a Pro Bowler early in his career.
Whether a team will be willing to put him on the 53-man roster remains to be seen, but it’s not hard to imagine there’s some juice left, especially now that his body has had time to recover.
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