Can Marvin Harrison Jr. Break Out With the Cardinals in Fantasy Football?

Marvin Harrison Jr. was selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. That invited lofty expectations -- expectations MHJ couldn't quite meet in his rookie campaign.

Rookies Brian Thomas Jr. (WR4), Malik Nabers (WR7), and Ladd McConkey (WR12) each managed a top-12 fantasy finish at WR last season, which only exacerbated our sour feelings toward Harrison's debut.

Can Harrison break out in Year 2 with the Arizona Cardinals?

Let's dive into Harrison's fantasy football outlook and figure out where he should go in drafts relative to his average draft position (ADP), which comes from FantasyPros' consensus ADP data for half-PPR leagues.

Marvin Harrison Jr. 2024 Season

To say Harrison had an outright bad rookie season would be unfair.

Were there some rookie counterparts drafted after him who ended up with better numbers? Absolutely. But with the hype as boisterous as it was, anything short of a phenomenal campaign would have looked underwhelming for MHJ.

He grabbed 885 receiving yards and eight touchdowns in 2024 -- marks that earned him a WR29 finish without missing a game. His ADP heading into the year was WR9 at pick 15.

Despite delivering a poor return on investment, Harrison churned out some awesome weekly finishes at his position, including Week 2 (WR1) and Week 8 (WR5). The upside was there, and he was the WR5 from Weeks 2 to 4.

Harrison's target shares -- 22.2% overall target share, 42.7% air yards share, 20.9% red zone target share, 45.7% end zone target share -- were pretty great even with Trey McBride commanding a whopping 147 targets (eighth-most in NFL) in 2024.

However, Harrison led the league in uncatchable targets (45), struggled to create separation, and netted just 1.68 yards per route run and 2.4 yards after catch per reception.

With that, let's check out Harrison's path to a breakout campaign in 2025.

Marvin Harrison Jr. 2025 Fantasy Football Outlook

Chemistry between Kyler Murray and Harrison will be the key to unlocking MHJ's potential in his sophomore campaign. We see the term chemistry get thrown around plenty, but a solid connection would truly mean mountains after examining what went wrong for Harrison in 2024.

According to Pro Football Focus, "players with a 60.5% catchable target rate one year typically regress to the mean and have a 68.8% catchable target rate the following year." Harrison figures to benefit from improved luck in this arena, but that alone won't save him. MHJ gained 11 pounds this offseason, which could help him get knocked around less and avoid running himself into disadvantageous spots in the first place.

Plus, the idea of the Year 2 break out exists for a reason. With a full season of trials and tribulations under his belt, Harrison is primed to grow -- both as an individual player and as it relates to his connection with Murray.

Arizona's receiving room didn't undergo any major changes this offseason, meaning Harrison and McBride are still the top dogs as targets go. FanDuel Research's Jim Sannes laid out NFL projected point totals for each team in 2025, and his model predicts the Cardinals to score the seventh-most points in the league this season, noting that an efficient offense tied to a poor defense in a dome spells shootouts. As a result, we can consider Harrison's eight touchdowns from a season ago a very repeatable feat.

FanDuel Sportsbook currently has Harrison's receiving prop at 975.5 yards. FantasyPros' consensus projections forecast MHJ to log 1,098 receiving yards and 7.7 touchdowns in his second year.

Currently, Harrison carries an ADP of WR16 at pick 43. That's a notable downgrade on his ADP from a season ago (WR9, 15th overall), enough so that it makes sense to seek rostering Harrison at his new ADP. There's a risk/reward with the unknown, but Harrison likely has stronger league-winning potential than most wideouts going in his ADP range. It's harder to get there if MHJ's 2024 advanced metrics turn you off, but it's easier to get on the train knowing he's bound for gaudy target shares on an offense that projects to score a lot of points.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.