The Jets have pulled off the biggest trade of the 2014 season, grabbing Percy Harvin from the Seahawks for a conditional draft pick. The deal is unlikely to be topped as the trade deadline is fast approaching at only 11 days away. We already looked at a variety of opinions from the Seahawks’ perspective, and below are a few Jets’ notes in the aftermath of the Harvin trade.
- A number of pundits have immediately reacted to the trade favorably for Seattle, but have viewed the move as a sign of desperation for the Jets. Rich Cimini of ESPNNewYork.com notes that the move is out of character for general manager John Idzik, and that the 1-6 Jets are unlikely to recover whether or not Harvin contributes.
- Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk feels like the trade is a “Hail Mary” for the Jets, and his colleague Michael David Smith agrees that the destination for Harvin does not make much sense.
- Joe Banner, who formerly held the positions of President of the Eagles and CEO of the Browns, agreed that the deal was a reach for the Jets (via Twitter). “This looks to me like an act of desperation by the Jets, as opposed to a step in a well thought out plan,” writes Banner. “Hard to understand this one.”
- In Alex Marvez’ piece for Fox Sports, he also praises the Seahawks for cutting bait while using the word “desperation” to describe the Jets’ motives.
- Not everyone agrees that the move was a desperate one, as Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com defends the trade for the Jets (via Twitter). Fitzgerald notes that the move sets them up for the future, where they will get a chance to see what Harvin can do without have to spend guaranteed money on another free agent receiver (via Twitter).
- Due to the lack of guarantees in his contract, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com notes that the next nine games with the Jets will likely amount to a tryout for him, with $41.5MM left to be earned through 2018 (via Twitter).
- Of the most positive reactions for the Jets, Dan Graziano of ESPN stands out (via Twitter). “Jets have tons of cap space, no weapons and are trying to develop a QB,” writes Graziano. “What’s not to like about the Harvin deal?”
- In determining winners and losers from the immediate aftermath of the trade, Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com lists a lot of Jets’ players and coaches on the winning side, with not a single Jet listed as a loser in the deal.
- The Seahawks have already had their bye week, and with the Jets having already played Thursday, Harvin is racking up weeks off as Adam Schefter of ESPN points out (via Twitter). The Jets’ bye week comes the week of Sunday November 16th, which will serve as Harvin’s third week without a scheduled game this season.
- The Jets have been known as a graveyard for fantasy football contributors, but the move could actually help Harvin in that aspect, writes Drew Loftis of the New York Post. Offensive coordinator Marty Mornhingweg has failed to be creative with the offense so far this season, but Harvin was underutilized in Seattle.
- Bob Glauber of Newsday has one big question following the Harvin trade. The question: why? He is left wondering what the reason for pulling the trigger on this deal at this time is for the Jets.
- Glauber is not the only one to ask that question, as Mark Cannizzaro of Newsday asks a similar question: why now? Cannizzaro also compared the move by Idzik to Jets’ former general manager Mike Tannenbaum, who was known for being aggressive in seeking out trades.
- Cimini also sees the similarites with Tannenbaum in this move, noting that Tannenbaum coveted Harvin during the 2009 draft (via Twitter). Reportedly he tried to trade up for him after already trading up for Mark Sanchez, but was unwilling to give up his 2010 first-round pick.