The local buzz surrounding Percy Harvin's playing time isn't loud enough to change coach Leslie Frazier's mind when it comes to what he thinks is best for the Vikings offense.
"I think we've taken the right approach with Percy with his reps and the packages that we use him in," Frazier said Wednesday. "It's the right approach."
Harvin has team highs in catches (nine) and receiving yards (83). And his six carries are one more than backup running back Toby Gerhart. Yet with the team mired in a 0-2 start with a 27th-ranked offense that has scored only 30 points in two games, Harvin's playing time -- or lack thereof -- has come under scrutiny.
Harvin played on 30 of the Vikings' 65 offensive snaps in Sunday's 24-20 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And according a review of playing time by 1500ESPN.com, Harvin played on 27 of the 43 snaps at San Diego the week before. So that's 57 of 108 snaps, or 52.8 percent.
Frazier was asked Wednesday if Harvin needed to show him something else to get on the field more.
"There's nothing he has to prove," Frazier said. "We know what Percy is capable of doing. He's a big-time playmaker, whether it's kickoff return or playing wide receiver. It's just a matter of using his strengths to our greatest advantage, to our team's advantage and picking out spots where we can do that."
The Vikings have a run-oriented, ball-control offense that often uses formations with three tight ends. Harvin often sits in those situations, although Frazier said blocking isn't an issue with Harvin.
"He's a very good run blocker," Frazier said. "He surprises some of those linebackers and DBs when he comes back and cracks. He's a tough guy, so that's not so much it as we have certain packages where we want to feature him and not necessarily overuse him, but use him to help our football team."