ESPN.com’s Elizabeth Merrill spent some time with Minnesota receiver Percy Harvin for this week’s Hot Read, and among other things, discussed his positive drug test prior to the scouting combine. Here’s an excerpt:

Harvin

The first question that begs to be asked is why did he do it? Why did Percy Harvin, who [Minnesota coach Brad] Childress says comes from a "great family" with a strong-willed mother and a cuddly shih tzu, make a decision, sometime leading up to February's NFL combine, that led him to test positive for marijuana?

He didn't do it for medicinal purposes. Harvin will confirm that he does suffer from severe migraines, with pain so intense at times that it makes him vomit and impairs his vision, but says he didn't smoke pot to alleviate any headache. He didn't do it to escape financial stresses, either. In a few months, Harvin was projected to be a top-10 draft pick.

"I didn't look at it and think of all the stuff or all the people that I might've let down at the time," Harvin says. "Of course, I thought about it afterwards. I was disappointed with myself. I had let myself down, my family down, the University of Florida down. So it was probably one of the worst days of my life.

"But I learned from it. I got back up, kept moving, ended up here and I'm having a great time."