Percy Harvin predraft analysis

WR Percy Harvin is the Vikings' first-round pick. Here is the predraft analysis on him.

Percy Harvin, Florida, 5-11¾, 193 – Fourth-year junior … Has a very checkered past that includes being suspended from competition twice, being arrested on an assault charge and being one of the few players ever banned from athletic competition by the Virginia State High School League … Became a starter midway through his redshirt freshman season and, in his three years with the Gators, he caught 133 passes for 1,929 yards and 13 touchdowns and rushed a whopping 194 times for 1,905 yards and 19 touchdowns … Missed time in each of his three seasons with ankle injuries and an Achilles strain … And extremely versatile player who can take any play the distance at any time … Extremely good hands and rarely drops passes … Has arguably the best acceleration off the line of any receiver in the draft … He goes from zero to 20 in the blink of an eye … Is his most dangerous in space, where he can make defenders look sick with his speed and change-of-direction skills … Runs good routes … Is an exceptional runner who would be dangerous on reverses and bubble screens … Gets a ton of yards after contact … Played in a pass-happy offense with a lot of misdirection and trickery that doesn’t apply to the pro game … Although viewed by many as a player with excellent potential as a return man, he was never used in that capacity in college … Has a lot of character questions that will have to be answered to the satisfaction of those in charge of war rooms … Is cocky, perhaps too much so … Is undersized and has a steady history of injuries in college, so durability will be a big question … Reportedly scored a 12 on the Wonderlic Test – one of the lowest scores possible … Is far from dominating when asked to block … Ran a 4.41 40 at the Combine with 20 reps, a 37½-inch vertical jump and a 10-1 broad jump.

PROJECTION: Perhaps nobody in the draft has the potential to make the immediate impact Harvin does in the NFL. As a slot receiver on a team that already has weapons, he could be a deadly scoring threat. On a team like Indianapolis, he could be a fantasy football god. But, he may never have what it takes to be a go-to No. 1 receiver that draws the top physical corner from an opponent. He has many of the qualities that have made players like Devin Hester so dangerous. Look for him to come off somewhere in the first round, but character and injury questions could drop him in the late stages of the round.