The Buffalo Bills and wide receiver Percy Harvin still appear to be worlds apart regarding his future with the team.
Around mid-season conflicting reports emerged that suggested Harvin was considering retirement due to his numerous injury setbacks. It seems as if he hasn't let anyone within the Bills organization in on his plans or thinking.
"We're still not sure what's going on," director of player personnel Jim Monos told WGR 550 (via ESPN's Mike Rodak). Despite the inconsistencies behind the scenes, Buffalo appears ready to welcome Harvin back should he return 100 percent healthy.
"Absolutely. No doubt about it," Bills general manager Doug Whaley told WGR when asked if he'd welcome the talented yet embattle back to Buffalo. "Obviously the first think for Percy is he's got to get completely healthy. Once he's healthy we'll reach out to his guy and explain that we'd like to have him back."
Though Whaley may be optimistic, NFL.com's Kevin Patra believes there are several obstacles standing in the way of a Harvin comeback. Health is clearly the biggest concern as the WR has appeared in just 28 of a possible 64 regular season games since 2012. Investing further into a player with that type of track record could be a sunk cost. Patra and Whaley also both note that Buffalo's salary cap situation isn't in the best shape.
"Right now it's pretty restrictive. I believe we're over the cap," Whaley said.
But even if Harvin can get healthy and the Bills can carve out enough salary cap space to bring him back, there's no guarantee that he'll be committed. Harvin has often had attitude problems in the past and another year of injuries likely hasn't done much to soften that aspect of his personality.
Ultimately, while Harvin remains a talented and intriguing offensive option, there seems to be too many hoops to jump through to justify his return to Buffalo for 2016.