Wide receiver Golden Tate was always an underrated player for the Seattle Seahawks. Not so much from a local point of view, but from a national perspective. He was a quick and effective slot receiver who was akin to current Seattle receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Fellow receiver Percy Harvin was part of one of the worst trades in Seahawks history. To acquire him in 2013, Seattle gave the Minnesota Vikings a first-round choice in 2013, a seventh-round pick that same year, and a third-round selection in 2014. Harvin played in a total of eight games for Seattle. He was also a problem in the locker room.
Harvin was rumored to have quibbled with lots of teammates in his short time with the Seahawks. He was so volatile and so rarely available to play in games that the team was happy to get rid of him in October of 2014.
Former Seahawks receiver Golden Tate sets record straight about fight with Percy Harvin
The most famous altercation Harvin had was a pre-Super Bowl XLVIII scuffle with Tate. On a recent episode of the Bussin' with the Boys podcast, Tate set the record straight about what occurred.
Tate said, "(Reporters) asked me, 'Hey, so what does it mean to have Percy Harvin back?' I was like, 'You know what, I love Percy's game. I think he's awesome. But the truth of the matter, we haven't had Percy the entire year, and we've made it this far. We can't wait to get him out there... but look, we've done it without him. We're fine."
The wide receiver was not wrong, of course. The Seahawks did not make a run to the Super Bowl, and then dominate the Denver Broncos once there, because of the offense or special teams play. The offense, with second-year pro Russell Wilson and running back Marshawn Lynch, was efficient, but not the reason for winning.
Special teams was solid, too, but even had Harvin been available all season long, he only would have augmented the already excellent team. The defense led Seattle to a championship. That would have happened even if Harvin had never played for the team.
Tate had the far better career, but Harvin had the more memorable moment as a Seahawk. With Seattle already in complete command of the Super Bowl against the Broncos, Harvin put to rest any hopes for a potential Denver comeback while returning the opening kickoff for a touchdown.
Had Harvin not taken the kick to the end zone, the Seahawks would have won the game only 36-8 instead of 43-8. Such was the importance (or lack thereof) of Harvin to the Seahawks' Super Bowl-winning team.
