Seahawks wide receiver Percy Harvin practiced fully on Wednesday, and he seems poised to play in Super Bowl XLVIII after missing the NFC title game with a concussion.
Earlier Wednesday, fellow receiver Golden Tate said Harvin’s potential impact on special teams can’t be overlooked.
“I’m especially excited to see him back there on kickoff return,” Tate told reporters Wednesday, according to an interview transcript from the NFL. “If you kick the ball to us, you never know what’s going to happen with him. He can take it — the first time [he] touched the ball this year on kick return, he took it for 58 yards, 59 yards.”
Indeed, Harvin’s lone kickoff return of the season went for 58 yards. It was the 16th kickoff return of 40 yards or more in 115 career regular-season attempts. Of those 115 attempts, five were returned for touchdowns.
It will be interesting to see if the Broncos can keep the ball out of Harvin’s hands. Kicker Matt Prater had just 22-of-55 kickoffs returned in road games this season; the more touchbacks he can force in the season’s biggest game, the better, especially if the brilliant Harvin is standing in the endzone, waiting for the ball.