The Arizona Cardinals are set to open their preseason schedule on Saturday night against the New Orleans Saints. Wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr wants to play in the preseason and made his desires known. Head coach Jonathan Gannon announced the preseason status for Harrison on Tuesday and granted his wishes. The fourth overall pick will be playing against the Saints, per Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.
Despite his top receiver suiting up for the game, quarterback Kyler Murray will not play in the preseason. Murray did not make his season debut until November due to an ACL injury. The Cardinals are ensuring that Murray is good to go for the season, but it will make the relationship between the two players interesting to watch in the regular season.
Harrison joins a team that thrived under Murray at the end of the season. While the team only went 3-5 under Murray, the offense took a step up from their previous poor play. The offense averaged 16.8 points (28th) and 189.7 yards (26th) per game before Murray returned. Those numbers jumped to 22.4 points (13th) and 362.8 (9th) with Murray under center.
Adding Harrison will certainly help the Cardinals' offense continue to produce. He was the best receiver in college football a season ago, racking up 1,200 yards and 14 touchdowns in 12 games for Ohio State. He won the Fred Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top receiver. Can he bring his college production to the pros and bring the Cardinals back to the playoffs?
Expectations for Arizona Cardinals in 2024
The Cardinals have the unfortunate luck of being in one of the toughest divisions in the National Football League. The defending NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers will certainly make a bid to get back to the Super Bowl, the Los Angeles Rams are looking to get back to the playoffs, and the Seattle Seahawks have a new, exciting coach.
Even if Harrison does produce at a high level, making the playoffs will be a tough task. With tough out-of-division games against the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions, and Green Bay Packers in the first six weeks, the team will have to come out of the gate flying. The offense will be key to any success they have, as those are three of the premier offenses in the league.
A realistic expectation for the Cardinals is an 8-9 season with a loose chance at making the playoffs down the stretch. They cannot expect this team to make the playoffs in their first season as a cohesive unit. Progression is important, though so doubling their win total is a huge step forward.
As for Harrison, he immediately becomes one of the team's top targets. While tight end Trey McBride will eat up some red zone targets, Harrison is the top threat at the wide receiver position. That is a similar position that Jets wideout Garrett Wilson was in at the beginning of 2022.
Wilson won the Offensive Rookie of the Year award with 82 catches for 1,103 yards and four touchdowns that year. Harrison should expect to be around the same numbers and contend for the Offensive Rookie of the Year despite the three quarterbacks ahead of him, who are all expected to start.
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