Percy Harvin Confirms He Fought Doug Baldwin, Golden Tate During Seahawks Tenure

For the last two seasons, rumors were rampant about alleged tensions between Percy Harvin and his Seattle Seahawks teammates. Now settled in Buffalo, the former Pro Bowl selection is ready to confirm the juiciest rumors: He fought teammates Doug Baldwin and Golden Tate.

In a lengthy profile by Tyler Dunne of the Buffalo News, Harvin says tension stemmed from jealousy—particularly when the other two weren't getting the ball.

“We all played the same position. So me coming in took reps from them,” Harvin, who played only six regular-season games in a Seahawks uniform, said. “They wanted to show they were already established having made it to the NFC Championship the year before I got there. So they kind of had the approach of, ‘We don’t need anybody else. We’re established.’”

Baldwin is the only player of the three remaining in Seattle. Tate, whom Harvin fought before Super Bowl XLVIII, signed a long-term deal with the Detroit Lions after the 2013 season, emerging as a Pro Bowler outside Seattle's more conservative attack. The Seahawks traded Harvin to the New York Jets midway through the 2014 campaign, but his play suffered in their anemic offense and his reputation as a malcontent followed him into the offseason.

Harvin pointed to Baldwin as the genesis for most of the tension. As the Seahawks were preparing for their 2014 preseason finale, the two came to blows following a situation Harvin claims he tried to diffuse by walking away.  

“Everybody calls him, ‘Tough Doug’ or ‘Angry Doug,’” Harvin said. “That was one of the times, he tried to use me to show he was a tough guy. I tried to walk away and he came back. It got messy. And I think what happened was the best for me.”

Harvin, who has been limited to 23 games over the last three seasons due to injury, signed a one-year, $6 million deal with Buffalo. Expected to start opposite Sammy Watkins and contribute on special teams, he hopes he'll be able to move on from the Seattle situation and re-emerge as the dynamic playmaker he was in Minnesota.

More than anything, though, all parties involved should hope he and his teammates keep their hands to themselves.

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