This former Ohio State Buckeyes star is not living up to expectations.
When Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. was selected by the Arizona Cardinals with the fourth overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, many had him pegged as a generational talent.
Harrison was expected to help transform the Cardinals' offense and was viewed as their ace receiver right off the bat. Unfortunately, he has not delivered on those expectations.
After a relatively disappointing rookie campaign in which Harrison caught 62 passes for 885 yards and eight touchdowns, the 23-year-old was viewed as a breakout candidate heading into 2025.
Needless to say, Harrison has looked far from it through three games, having managed just 10 catches for 142 yards and a score. In fact, he looked better last year.
The low point of Harrison's season to date — and probably of his NFL career — came during Arizona's Week 3 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, in which he somehow dropped a wide open pass from Kyler Murray that could have completely changed the tenor of the game.
Look at Fred Warner's reaction. Even he seemed stunned that Harrison botched the play.
So, where does that leave Harrison, who owns a catch rate of just 54.1 percent since entering the league? Well, Harrison feels he knows he can be better.
“I think I know what I’m capable of and to go out there and not play nowhere near to the best of my abilities, it’s frustrating,’’ Harrison said, via Doug Haller of The Athletic. “It hurts the team and I got to get better.”
But can he? There are times when elite collegiate talents simply do not translate on to the professional level, and thus far, it's hard not to wonder about Harrison.
Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images.“Everybody’s got a job to do,’’ Harrison added. “I’m not doing my job at a high-enough level at the moment.”
Harrison leads all Cardinals wide receivers with 17 targets. No one else comes close. Michael Wilson is second with eight. Zay Jones and Greg Dortch each have four.
Clearly, Arizona is depending on Harrison, but he isn't fulfilling his lofty expectations. It's way too early to use the word "bust," but there is no doubt that the Ohio State product is approaching dangerous territory in Year 2 of his NFL tenure.