This former Ohio State Buckeyes star is not living up to expectations.
When the Arizona Cardinals selected former Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. with the fourth overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, most assumed that the Cardinals had landed a generational talent who would take their offense to the next level.
That has not been the case thus far.
Now in his second professional season, Harrison has not lived up to expectations. He certainly wasn't bad during his rookie campaign, catching 62 passes for 885 yards and eight touchdowns, but his 53.4 percent catch rate was a bit concerning, and he did not make the type of dynamic impact that most anticipated.
Fast forward to 2025, and not much has changed. Harrison has logged 22 catches for 338 yards and a couple of scores through six games, and while he is actually on pace to eclipse his yardage total from Year 1, he has not made the type of jump many were expecting.
Arizona Cardinals receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. Credit: Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images.In fact, Bleacher Report's Brad Gagnon has listed Harrison among the 12 players with the most to prove for the remainder of the 2025 NFL season.
"Harrison is expected to become a superstar, but he could fall short of 1,000 yards for the second consecutive year. If he and [Kyler] Murray and/or [Jacoby] Brissett don't start vibing soon, questions will be asked about the Ohio State product being a top-five pick," Gagnon wrote.
Harrison posted back-to-back 1,200-yard campaigns over his final two seasons at Ohio State, leading the Big Ten with 14 receiving touchdowns both years.
The 6-foot-3, 220-pound pass-catcher has all the tools one would expect from a No. 1 receiver. Not only does he have terrific size, but he possesses tremendous athleticism and great route-running ability. His hands, however, have been in serious question thanks to a series of drops that have largely defined the early stages of his sophomore NFL campaign.
Harrison has yet to log a single 100-yard performance this season and only posted two such outings in 2024, and while that is partially the fault of the quarterback, it's still certainly a disappointing number for Harrison.
We'll see if the 23-year-old can turn things around at some point, but he is certainly not looking like the franchise-changing prospect most thought he was heading into last year's draft.