Why Harrison Jr.’s goals fell after the first quarter

TEMPE, Ariz. – When Arizona Cardinals rookie receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. made a quick out on first-and-10 with 5:10 left in the third quarter against the Washington Commanders on Sunday, it was the first time that He has been targeting quarterback Kyler Murray since the 3:35 mark of the first quarter.

A stretch of 28:25 had elapsed without the No. 4 pick in this year’s draft and NFL co-leader in touchdown receptions (four) being involved in a Cardinals offense that ended in a 42-14 loss stuck in the mud. During that time, Washington had scored 20 points and totaled 218 yards of offense while Arizona had no more points on the board and only had 44 yards.

In the first quarter, Harrison caught three passes on four targets for 21 yards and a touchdown. He then had two catches on two targets for 24 yards the rest of the game.

Harrison’s absence was glaring even for Murray.

“I felt that too,” Murray said on Sunday after the game. “We have to get our best players the ball.”

Sunday was not an isolated incident for Harrison. His production has declined dramatically after the first quarter during Arizona’s first four games. It caught the attention of freshman Murray, coach Jonathan Gannon and offensive coordinator Drew Petzing.

Through the first quarters of this season, Harrison has completed 29 routes and caught nine passes on 12 targets for 177 yards and four touchdowns. In his breakout game in Week 2 against the Los Angeles Rams, Harrison was targeted five times in the first quarter for four catches, 130 yards and two touchdowns.

After that, Harrison’s involvement in the offense all but disappears, despite averaging 24 tackles per quarter, with a high of 33 tackles in the fourth quarter. In the second quarter, he has just two catches on five targets for 11 yards. In the third quarter, he had two catches on four targets for 24 yards. And in the fourth quarter, he had two catches on six targets for 31 yards.

When you look at it from the big picture, the difference is striking: He only has 15 scores, six catches and 66 yards in the second, third and fourth quarters.

“There are different routines in every game,” Harrison said. “The games play out in a certain way, whether you are down or up, there are different scenarios and situations during the game. I try not to really pay attention to that. I can try to just control what I can control whenever that happens.” The ball gets away and makes a play.

“That’s really all I can say about it. There are different processes in the games.”

The numbers paint a picture of a passing game that struggles to stay consistent every week after the first 15 minutes.

In the first quarter, the Cardinals are averaging 7.7 yards per play and 10.5 yards per pass attempt. However, as the game progresses, the Cardinals’ averages drop to 5.0 yards per play and 6.0 yards per pass attempt. Murray completed 86.2% of his pass attempts in the first quarter but only 63.3% the rest of the game.

While the passing game is on a weekly rollercoaster ride, the Cardinals’ running game was steady, averaging 5.4 yards per rush in the first quarter compared to 5.3 the rest of the game.

Petzing said there were “a variety of things” that led to Harrison’s exclusion.

“It takes pass protection, it takes coverage, it takes route, it takes execution,” Petzing said. “So I really can’t pin it down to one area, but we definitely need to address it.”

Gannon supported Harrison, saying the freshman will “continue to get his plays and touches, and we’ve got to continue to try to get him the ball.”

The question for the future is: How?

Harrison said this week that he understands the need to distribute the ball to receivers like Michael Wilson and Greg Dortch, include running back James Conner and let Murray make plays as best he can. For Petzing, however, there is a fine line between passing the ball to Harrison and allowing him to receive touches in the natural course of the attack.

However, that didn’t happen.

Murray knows what needs to happen for the Cardinals’ offense to put up points and numbers starting this week against the San Francisco 49ers: Harrison needs to touch the ball more often throughout the game.

“I think there are times and places for these moments,” Murray said of feeding Harrison. “Obviously I would like to throw him (Harrison) the ball every play. I would love to throw the ball to Mike (Wilson), (tight end) Trey (McBride), everyone, on every play, but that’s not the case.”

“Yes, I can feel it. I feel like during that game there was kind of a pause in the middle where he didn’t touch the ball. I think to create explosiveness, you have to get the ball there. Your best players, and they have to touch the ball. Obviously Drew knows this and we have to be better.