The Seahawks apparently traded Percy Harvin in large part because he became a problem in the locker room. But trading him may cause problems in the locker room.
Seahawks running back Marshawyn Lynch, a friend of Harvin’s, indicated on Twitter that he wasn’t happy about it, and according to one report, Lynch’s feelings go beyond just “unhappy.” Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reports that Lynch almost didn’t get on the team bus for the trip to the airport for Sunday’s game at St. Louis because he was so upset about Harvin getting traded.
That’s a bit surprising considering that if anything, Lynch should be a beneficiary of Harvin leaving: Losing Harvin makes Lynch a more integral part of the Seahawks’ offense. But Lynch isn’t an easy person to keep happy, and his personal friendship with Harvin apparently trumps any benefit of getting the ball more. The Seahawks don’t want Lynch to be unhappy (and in fact just a couple months ago they restructured his contract to make him happy), but Lynch’s unhappiness could become the result of Harvin leaving.
And Lynch isn’t the only player who seems upset about it. Cliff Avril and Bruce Irvin both also indicated on Twitter that they weren’t happy about Harvin leaving.
Although no one associated with the Seahawks has explained exactly what was going on with Harvin, there seems to be a growing sense that the Seahawks wanted to get rid of him because they sensed he was part of a schism within the locker room, and the front office thought they could nip it in the bud by sending Harvin packing. The problem, however, comes up if trading Harvin further divides the team between those who wanted him to remain a teammate, and those who are happy to see him go.
