Impact Of The Percy Harvin Trade On Green Bay Packers
By Kenn Korb
Sep 4, 2014; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Percy Harvin (11) is tackled by Green Bay Packers cornerback Tramon Williams (38) during the first quarter at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
How does this affect Green Bay?
Green Bay won’t see any direct effects from this trade; they’ve already played both the Jets and the Seahawks. Indirectly though, this could end up causing things to work in the Packers’ favor down the line toward the playoffs.
Now that they do not have Harvin anymore, the Seahawks will be somewhat easier for teams to game plan against: Stop Lynch and the running game and force them to pass. Taking away someone with the dynamics of Harvin removes one of the threats you have to worry about on a per-play basis, so it becomes easier to determine what to do.
That may not make it that much easier against a team with the abilities of the Seahawks, but games in the NFL are routinely decided by the smallest of margins so removing an option that you have to account for can only help in preparation.
Somewhere along the way, this may end up costing Seattle a game or two, and that could be all the difference needed in determining whether they make the playoffs or not and/or their potential seeding.
Also, now if Green Bay does happen to face Seattle in the playoffs, Harvin won’t be there to break off an unexpected jet sweep or streak across the field – which he did in Week 1 – and that could manage to tilt the outcome in the Packers’ favor.
He won’t be the determining factor for anything that happens with Green Bay the rest of this season, but his absence could be one that does help. When it comes to a trade that doesn’t directly impact your team, that is about as great of an outcome as you can hope for.