When the New York Jets sent a conditional draft pick to the Seattle Seahawks for the rights to disgruntled receiver Percy Harvin, the team knew it was going to have a decision to make at the end of the year.
Just a year ago, Seattle handed Harvin a brand new, six-year contract worth $67 million. While the numbers seamed staggering, just the first two years of the contract were guaranteed. At the conclusion of the 2014-2015 season, Seattle could cut Harvin with no financial repercussions.
When Seattle traded Harvin to New York, the Jets inherited that same deal. With the first two years paid off, New York can cut Harvin at the end of this season and take no penalty on the team's cap. Or, it can keep Harvin on the roster and pay him $10.5 million.
Harvin's Jets career is now going on its seventh game, barring the receiver misses New York's matchup Sunday with the Tennessee Titans due to an ankle injury. If New York decides to bring Harvin back, has his play matched the lofty paycheck set to come his way?
In the season's six previous games, all played with New York, Harvin is the only Jets receiver in the team's last 26 games to go over the 100-yard receiving mark. He's done it twice. With New York, Harvin has caught 25 passes for 306 yards and a touchdown. He's also rushed 19 times for 99 yards and returned 18 kicks for 443 yards -- an average of nearly 25 yards a return.
If Harvin's Jets totals were expanded to the season's full 16 games, each individually is not staggering, but combined are near franchise records. Taking Harvin's Jets game average of receiving, rushing and returning, then assuming he reaches that average in a full 16-game season, the wideout would be set to catch 67 passes for 816 yards and three touchdowns, rush 51 times for 264 yards and return 48 kickoffs for 1,181 yards.
The receiving yardage would be the Jets second-highest single season mark since 2010. As for the all-purpose yards total of 2,261 yards? That mark would be the second-most in Jets franchise history.
In 2008, ex-Jets and present Titans running back Leon Washington set the New York franchise record with 2,337 all-purpose yards. That season, Washington rushed for 448 yards, had 355 yards receiving, 1,231 kick return yards and 303 on punts.
The difference in Washington's 2008 totals is the fact the back played in an era where teams kicked off from the 30 yard line, not the 35. When Washington set the Jets individual record, the Oakland Raiders held the league's best touchback percentage, or number of kickoffs that were not returned, at 33.35 percent. This year, 29 teams hold a percentage higher than that mark with the Carolina Panthers leading the league with 79 percent of kickoffs being downed for a touchback.
The issue New York faces is as much of a risk as anything else. When healthy, Harvin's play on the field is worthy of the hefty price tag. But Harvin hasn't always been healthy, and his personality off the field has raised questions.
The Jets can roll the dice with Harvin and elect to pay him the $10.5 million next season, then still maintain the ability to cut him whenever they please. Or, the team can renegotiate with Harvin, lower the total base salary to something more team friendly and then replace the lost 'salary' with guaranteed money.
Playing on the full $10.5 million mark runs the risk of Harvin getting hurt. Paying guaranteed money runs the risk of Harvin's temper flaring up.
It's a decision the Jets have to make. The clock on an ultimatum starts ticking down in three weeks.
