Arizona Cardinals legend Larry Fitzgerald has taken notice to what Marvin Harrison Jr. has brought to the table for the Cardinals so far in his rookie season.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!After only recording one catch for four yards in Week 1, Harrison has nine receptions for 194 yards and three touchdowns over the last two weeks, as the Cardinals sit at 1-2 on the season.
Harrison broke out in Arizona’s 41-10 Week 2 win over the Los Angeles Rams with four catches, 130 yards and two touchdowns. One fan (@MrAZSports on X) noticed similarities between the 6-foot-4 Harrison’s first career touchdown grab in this game and a past touchdown by the 6-foot-3 Fitzgerald, as both were able to get their feet down in the back of the end zone.
Marvin Harrison Jr touchdown looked a lot like a Larry Fitzgerald JR touchdown. pic.twitter.com/NJpEIslkwj
— ???? Mr. Az (@MrAzSports) September 16, 2024
Fitzgerald replied to this post on Monday to give respect to Harrison after Arizona lost to the Lions 20-13 in Week 3.
“Big difference is @marvinharrisonjr’s doing it in year one!” Fitzgerald said on X. “It took me a few years and a lot of experience to make those plays. The future is really bright for him and the @AZCardinals.”
Big difference is @marvinharrisonjr's doing it in year one! It took me a few years and a lot of experience to make those plays.
The future is really bright for him and the @AZCardinals .
— Larry Fitzgerald (@LarryFitzgerald) September 23, 2024
Some fans are still questioning Harrison, as he has been targeted 22 times, but only caught 10 of them. Harrison even admitted after Week 2 that he and quarterback Kyler Murray had some “fixing” to do after he was unable to reel in four passes from Murray in the contest.
Fitzgerald, who played with Murray for two seasons (2019-20), is confident the chemistry between these two will be okay.
“They are coming trust and believe,” Fitzgerald replied to a fan (@SteveHoller on X) who said some connections between Murray and Harrison “aren’t quite there yet.”
They are coming trust and believe.
— Larry Fitzgerald (@LarryFitzgerald) September 23, 2024
Fitzgerald had 58 receptions (115 targets) for 780 yards and eight touchdowns in his rookie season in 2004 after being drafted third overall by the Cardinals. Despite where he was selected, Fitzgerald was not Arizona’s No. 1 wide receiver right away after Anquan Boldin had a rookie-record 101 catches the season prior with Arizona.
Fitzgerald would go on to make his first of 11 Pro Bowls the very next season with a league-leading 103 receptions for 1,409 yards and 10 touchdowns. In his 16-year career with Arizona, Fitzgerald recorded 1,432 receptions (second most in NFL history), 17,492 receiving yards and 121 touchdowns, by far the most in all three categories in Cardinals history.
Harrison now has arguably the biggest expectations of any Cardinals rookie wide receiver ever and will look to follow in Fitzgerald’s footsteps, as well as his dad’s, Marvin Harrison Sr., who had a Hall-of-Fame career with the Indianapolis Colts.
Will he be able to live up to having a legendary career like Fitzgerald and his dad did?
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Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
