Cardinals might have a Marvin Harrison Jr. problem

Billy Heyen

Cardinals might have a Marvin Harrison Jr. problem image

Marvin Harrison Jr. had the easiest catch of his entire season floating his way on a nice toss from Kyler Murray.

The Arizona Cardinals' young star wide receiver was wide open. It's the picture above this article. There's no one anywhere near Harrison.

He dropped it.

And while that's not the only reason the Cardinals lost 16-15 to the 49ers on Sunday, it didn't help.

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It also is just part of what has been a rough start to the season for Harrison.

"Coach Jonathan Gannon said last week that in order for Arizona's offense to be at a premium, wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. needs to touch the ball more," wrote ESPN's Josh Weinfuss. "But Harrison's unassuming start to the season continued with three catches on six targets for 44 yards. He now has 10 catches, 17 targets, 142 yards and a touchdown in the season."

The former Ohio State star's relationship with Murray was already a discussion point before the season.

In Harrison's rookie campaign, less than 60% of the targets he received from Murray resulted in catches.

Sure, some of those are down-the-field throws, but it's still just not efficient enough throwing to a guy who is supposed to be a No. 1 wide receiver.

And in the early going, it has felt a lot like that, too.

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Murray is going other places on key plays, as well. On a third-and-9 that would've iced the ballgame on Sunday, Murray targeted Zay Jones of all people.

It was incomplete, and the Cardinals went on to lose.

Harrison entered the league with sky-high expectations. He should be the guy Murray is forcing the ball to in that spot.

But instead, Harrison is dropping a simple pass right to him in wide open space. The Cardinals need to figure this out.

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Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle