The Minnesota Vikings had only two players in last year's NFL Network annual top 100 players ranking — running back Adrian Peterson and defensive end Jared Allen — following their 3-13 season in 2011.
The first Minnesota player in the top 100 countdown this year, after the 10-6 record and playoff appearance last season, is no longer on the team.
Percy Harvin, traded to the Seattle Seahawks in March, was No. 90 on the list, voted on by current players following the season. The top 100 is revealed 10 at a time on the NFL Network.
There’s no doubting Harvin’s elite playmaking skills. At the time of his ankle injury last season, Harvin led the league with 62 catches. He still finished as Minnesota’s leading receiver despite playing just nine games. He added a team-high 677 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns to go with 22 carries for 96 yards and a touchdown.
Harvin was traded to Seattle after continuing an acrimonious relationship with the Vikings staff and coaches and was looking for a new contract. Minnesota received a 2013 first-round pick, No. 25 used on Florida State cornerback Xavier Rhodes, a seventh-round pick (used on North Carolina offensive lineman Travis Bond) and a mid-round pick in 2014.
In trying to replace Harvin’s production, the Vikings also signed veteran receiver Greg Jennings as a free agent and made a costly trade to move into the first round and select versatile Tennessee receiver Cordarrelle Patterson.
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