Every week that the Cardinals struggle to get WR Marvin Harrison Jr. involved in the offense, the murmurs about a potential trade seem to get a little bit louder. The former No. 4 pick in the draft had three catches on five targets for 40 yards in Week 3 — modest numbers that simultaneously were the most, by far, that he’d been involved in the game plan this season. 

As perplexing as it is given how universally beloved Harrison was as a prospect, it’s clear it’s just not working for him in Arizona right now. Harrison’s coaches and teammates are all supportive right now but it’s also clear no one feels like there’s a mandate to get him the ball. The Cardinals have a strong group of skill players with TE Trey McBride, WR Michael Wilson and RB Jeremiyah Love. Not only have those three demonstrated they can do damage when they’re funneled targets, their talents are also easier to involve in HC Mike LaFleur’s system. 

There even seems to be more of a role for WR Kendrick Bourne in the offense than Harrison. Bourne is a solid veteran with a track record of being a contributing role player, but he’s a 31-year-old former undrafted free agent who has never cracked 1,000 yards in a season. Yet he has 14 targets and 12 catches compared to nine and four for Harrison. On pure talent and pedigree, that’s not supposed to happen. 

It demonstrates two things: Harrison is probably not quite as talented as everyone thought, in addition to dealing with a lack of confidence; and his fit in LaFleur’s system is questionable. Harrison is a classic “X” receiver who lines up outside on the line of scrimmage and is tasked with beating press coverage, winning contested balls and threatening deep down the field. He’s not as good after the catch or as flexible moving around the formation, attributes prioritized by LaFleur’s system and other Shanahan-style offenses. That’s why the offense prioritizes looks for McBride, Wilson, Love and even Bourne ahead of Harrison. 

It also means that the Cardinals could probably shift someone else into Harrison’s role, maybe even depth players like Jalen Brooks or fifth-rounder Reggie Virgil, and not skip much of a beat. That’s among the many reasons the Cardinals should be seriously considering a trade. 

Trade Logistics

Unless Harrison is going to flip a switch all of a sudden, it’s unlikely he’ll be in Arizona’s long-term plans. The Cardinals have to decide on the fifth-year option in his contract by next May, and it will be in the neighborhood of $19 million fully guaranteed for the 2028 season. Given Harrison’s struggles so far, it’s hard to see that option getting picked up, making 2027 a contract year for the former first-rounder. 

As negative as the conversation is around Harrison now, this might be as high as his trade value gets. The longer the Cardinals wait, the more the lack of long-term contractual control becomes a drag on his trade value. It also gets further from the pre-draft evaluations teams had of Harrison and which could still prompt some team to give something of substance to roll the dice on Harrison, even if it’s a long way away from the original pick Arizona invested. 

Would it sting for GM Monti Ossenfort to admit such a big mistake? Sure, especially because the rest of his record so far has been patchy. But the Cardinals have to be clear-eyed about whether anything is going to change with Harrison, especially with the current coaching staff. A third-round pick would do more to help the team in the long run than the damage from the short-term optics. 

There’s reason to believe the Cardinals would have a market if they decided to move Harrison. Longtime NFL reporter Charles Robinson went in depth on Harrison’s trade market, including gauging his value from seven different front offices. Actual negotiations are different than just spitballing to a reporter, but the consensus was that Harrison was worth at least a Day 2 pick right now. Most believed that a fresh start away from the Cardinals would do Harrison good and help him recapture the potential he showed as a rookie. 

For now, the Cardinals’ willingness to trade Harrison seems to be the biggest roadblock to a deal. Despite being viewed as a rebuilding squad, Arizona hasn’t shown much willingness to engage in trade discussions with veteran players that other teams covet, like Harrison and OLB Josh Sweat. Right now the team is 1-2 and has been surprisingly competitive. If the losses continue to pile up before the trade deadline, however, the team’s stance could change. 

Potential Landing Spots

Here are a few teams that would make sense as potential trade destinations if (when?) Arizona decides to make Harrison available. 

Houston Texans

One of the issues that’s hurt the Texans in their 0-3 start to the season has been a lack of consistency at receiver, especially with top target Nico Collins out with a hamstring injury. After losing WR Jayden Higgins to a torn ACL in August, Houston has actually been without its top two projected receivers for this campaign — and WR Tank Dell is also on injured reserve as he continues his attempted comeback from a career-threatening knee injury. 

Collins has a good chance to return in Week 4 but these soft tissue injuries have been a recurring issue, so it would be smart for the Texans to plan contingencies. That was partially the goal in acquiring WR Kayshon Boutte in a trade with the Patriots; however, he’s still integrating into the offense and isn’t under contract past this season. 

Trading for Harrison is an intriguing option for the Texans to consider. Number 1, it would give them another big downfield target to threaten defenses down the field and work in tandem with their physical rushing attack. Collins is pivotal for the Texans’ offense for that reason, and it’s no surprise they’ve struggled the past two weeks while he’s been out. Houston’s system would be a much better fit for Harrison, even if it doesn’t completely remove the warts in his game.

A trade would also reunite Harrison with his college quarterback, C.J. Stroud, not to mention several other former Ohio State players. Texans GM Nick Caserio has shown an affinity for Buckeyes and I would bet big that he had a glowing grade on Harrison as a prospect. A change of scenery, plus a reunion with familiar faces, might be the spark Harrison needs to turn things around. 

The Texans have the draft capital to make a deal, and Caserio is one of the more prolific GMs when it comes to making trades. There’s also urgency to get this season turned around after an 0-3 start. Houston envisioned a twin towers dynamic at receiver when Higgins was healthy, and Harrison would help them recapture that. Down the line, they have a good problem to sort out in 2027 when Higgins returns with Harrison and Collins both under contract, and Harrison gives them insurance if Higgins’ rehab isn’t smooth. 

Buffalo Bills

Bills GM Brandon Beane would be justified in taking a victory lap for the performance of his receiver room so far. The Bills are the No. 1 offense in football and the trade for WR D.J. Moore looks like it accomplished Beane’s mission of finding a No. 1 receiver for QB Josh Allen. Even WR Keon Coleman, who was on the ropes coming into this year, has been productive, catching eight of nine targets for 101 yards in three games. 

But there’s an opportunity for Beane to be opportunistic and keep adding to the room. Back in 2023 after a playoff loss to the Bengals, Beane made headlines when he was trying to explain some of Buffalo’s struggles to rebuild the receiving corps around Allen. 

“I don’t want to suck bad enough to have to get Ja’Marr Chase,” Beane said. “He’s a heck of a talent. I would love to have him. But you gotta go through some lean years to do that.”

He was alluding to the fact that elite talents usually go well before successful teams that win a lot of games like the Bills have a crack at drafting them. But now there’s potentially a situation where the Bills could take a crack at a former top talent in Harrison, who went fourth overall the same year they drafted Coleman at No. 33, for pennies on the dollar. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if that was something that piqued Beane’s interest. 

The immediate fit with the Bills might be crowded. Harrison would be learning a new offense while competing with Coleman and veteran WR Josh Palmer for the other boundary receiver spot across from Moore. Targets might not be especially more plentiful for Harrison in Buffalo than in Arizona, at least not at first. 

However, Harrison has the potential to be a more dynamic and explosive upgrade at the “X” receiver than either Coleman or Palmer, as well as a more realistic piece to their long-term plans. Buffalo also has an X-factor in WR coach Drew Terrell, who was Harrison’s position coach in his first two seasons with the Cardinals. Not only do they have familiarity with Harrison’s makeup and what did and didn’t work in his first two years, they can possibly integrate Harrison into their offense faster with someone who has that shared framework.  

The Bills already made one big trade by landing Moore this offseason, but a trade for Harrison would be a shot at landing an heir to Moore, who is 29 years old. Best-case scenario — he recaptures the promise that made him a top-five pick and Beane looks like a genius. Even if he doesn’t reach those heights, there’s reason to think he could play a similar role for Allen that WR Gabe Davis did, and Davis had some really solid seasons in Buffalo.   

New England Patriots

The Patriots have come under fire for their decisions at wide receiver this offseason. They cut Diggs to save around $20 million, then turned around and spent most of that on a big free agent deal for WR Romeo Doubs. They traded a 2028 first-round pick for A.J. Brown, then dealt away Boutte despite a strong 2025 season and 2026 preseason because they viewed him as a healthy scratch behind Brown in a full-strength receiver room. 

Brown sprained his ankle in Week 1, Doubs has battled drops and Diggs has been productive for the Washington Commanders while the Patriots offense and QB Drake Maye have languished. It’s ripe soil for second-guessing New England. It would be surprising if the team was ready to backtrack already but this is definitely a problem point for the team, one that might not be solved just by the return of Brown off injured reserve in a few weeks. 

Harrison would give the Patriots another perimeter target who Maye can trust on jump balls and who can threaten defenses down the field. That was the element they sought in trading for Brown and it’s one they’ve missed while he’s been out. Veteran WR Mack Hollins has come up big a few times, but he’s a depth player for a reason. 

There are also still long-term questions about the receiving corps, which might help tilt the scales for the Patriots if they’re considering making a run at Harrison. Patriots HC Mike Vrabel has some Ohio State connections he can lean on to get intel on what’s been behind Harrison’s early-career slump. If they’re confident they can get the best out of him, they would be giving up a Day 2 pick for a top-10 talent. 

The team has noted it wants to be judicious with draft pick trades since they’ll be needed to build around cornerstone players who have and will be extended soon, like Maye and CB Christian Gonzalez. However in this case, the upside might be too good for them to resist.