Is the Marvin Harrison Jr. situation a WR, QB or scheme issue?

Of all the things that have been going less than well for the Arizona Cardinals, the biggest story as been the lack of production and usage for receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. Through three games, he has been targeted just nine times and has four receptions for 73 yards. He is fifth on the team in targ

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What is the story about?

Of all the things that have been going less than well for the Arizona Cardinals, the biggest story as been the lack of production and usage for receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. Through three games, he has been targeted just nine times and has four receptions for 73 yards.

He is fifth on the team in targets, trailing the following players:

TE Trey McBride, 34 targets
WR Michael Wilson, 31 targets
WR Kendrick Bourne, 14 targets

RB Jeremiyah Love, 12 targets

Harrison definitely should be in the top three, but what is the problem?

Is it a Harrison problem, a QB problem or a scheme problem?

One could certainly say that part of the problem is Harrison. There are clips going around where he seems to be running at half speed, just going through the motions. And that certainly is a factor, and it happens to a lot of receiver when they know they aren't getting the ball.

One could

say it is a quarterback issue, as Jacoby Brissett isn't looking his way. In four healthy games with Brissett in 2025, Harrison was targeted six, 10, 12 and seven times. Brissett is not taking shots down the field. He is averaging only 5.6 yards per pass, which is not good.

However, it likely is more of a scheme issue. Head coach Mike LaFleur appears disinterested in getting Harrison involved easily early in the game. When asked about it earlier this season, he referred to McBride and Bourne rather than saying that he could find ways to get him going. That answer is telling. He isn't interested in using Harrison creatively to get him targets. He isn't a priority.

With 65 of the Cardinals' 113 (57.5%) pass attempts directed at McBride and Wilson and another 17% are dumpoffs to running backs, schematically the offense wants Harrison to do one thing — go down the field. And if there isn't time to get the ball down to him, what can anyone do? Brissett has been checking down successfully, but the lack of explosive plays is obvious.

Whatever the reason, Harrison is being wasted. There is plenty of blame to go around. But there is time to fix things.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple Podcasts.