If you happen to be running laps around the right high school football field at the right time of morning on the right weekend, you might catch a glimpse of the most elite passing game in the Valley.
Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, rookie Marvin Harrison Jr., and the bolstered receiving corps are not satisfied with the weekday work they are putting in at the team’s training facility in Tempe. They want more. They have been gathering on weekends for supplemental training.
“We get most of the grunt work here,” wideout Michael Wilson said after the first day of minicamp in Tempe on Tuesday. “The weekends are just to work on some of the stuff that we may have missed, or things we need extra work on.
“Our offense is built off rhythm and timing. There’s not a whole bunch of feel that goes into our offense. It’s off steps. It’s off revolutions. When we run certain routes, it’s based off [a] step on your outside or inside foot. That takes time because [Murray’s] drop is predicated on our steps and our routes. Last year, we didn’t have enough time throughout the offseason to work on that timing; that chemistry.”
The added work will no doubt speed the learning curve, help forge relationships and improve the Cardinals offense, but let’s be honest, so will the personnel. Wilson is a year older and feeling healthy after a rash of injuries spanning his latter years at Stanford and his rookie NFL season. Greg Dortch has emerged as a difficult one-on-one matchup out of the slot, there is more overall depth at the position, and that new guy has teammates gushing with praise about his potential.
“You look at his height, and then you look at his movement ability — those two things usually don’t match up like that,” cornerback Garrett Williams said of Harrison. “For him to do it and make everything look so easy — the ball tracking ability — he’s everything people said he is.”
There are plenty of reasons for optimism on this young and rising team. Kyler Murray is healthy and happy again. There is more depth along the offensive line, more depth at running back, and a defense that needed improvement has undergone significant changes.
But the sexiest reason — the one that has Cardinals fans dreaming of a return to the postseason — is Murray’s receiving menu, headlined by a guy whom many analysts and peers believe is destined for greatness.
We already know that MHJ comes from good stock. His dad, Hall of Fame receiver Marvin Harrison, has been tutoring him for years on everything from routes and off-field training to media sessions and nutrition. The prodigy is now so versed that the tutor no longer feels the need to teach.
“He’s been talking about everything but football,” Marvin Jr. said laughing. “It got to this point, he kind of just gets to be a dad.”
Like everyone else, Harrison Sr. is eagerly awaiting the debut of the most heralded receiving draft pick in Arizona in 20 years. The standard is, of course, Larry Fitzgerald, who holds every meaningful receiving record in franchise history, but the comparisons have already begun with an eye toward Harrison’s potential climb to the top rung.
Harrison isn’t touching that sort of boast with a 10-foot pole. Nor is he offering much insight on his internal machinations this early in his Cardinals tenure, but that’s both common for a rookie, and understandable when you consider the spotlight and expectations under which he operates as the No. 4 overall pick in 2024.
In keeping with his teachings, Harrison is keeping his head down, saying all the right things and deferring to those around him.
“I think you just come in and you just want to give respect to the people that have been here before you, no matter where you get drafted,” he said. “This is something I try to do. I didn’t want to come in here with a big head. I knew I had to earn everything.”
That doesn’t mean he has lowered his expectations.
“Honestly, I have a lot of confidence in my abilities going forward,” he said. “But I think the mental aspect is kind of the most important right now, just learning the playbook, learning where I need to be for Kyler and again, trusting my teammates and coaches. That’s what I’m most focused on at the moment.”
Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon said Harrison’s transition to the pro game has been pretty seamless, but he also noted that there are many steps ahead, including adapting to the speed of a game that can only be felt on game days, and adapting to the different techniques and sizes of cornerbacks who oppose him.
“He’s got four or five releases,” Gannon said, adding that offensive coordinator Drew Petzing and passing game coordinator/receivers coach Drew Terrell have recommended shortening his playbook. “Here’s your three that you need to really hone in on. Sometimes, less is more. Eighty percent of the time, throw your fastball. These other two are changeups, but this works. Do it.
“I think it’ll just be a constant growth and learning, from his standpoint, what works, what do I need to do? Where does the quarterback expect me?”
Harrison is also adapting to the inevitability of becoming a Valley celebrity. He has already attended a handful of community and charity events, and he sounded genuinely surprised by the reception he received.
“I kind of just got here, so I’m kind of still new, but they all kind of know who I am,” he said. “It’s been great to kind of interact with them and bring smiles to people’s faces. That’s probably one of my favorite things I’ve done so far since I’ve been here.”
The easiest way to elicit smiles is still ahead, but Harrison hasn’t given anyone around him reason to doubt the hype. At times, the hype feels inadequate.
“He was bigger than I thought when I saw him and he’s just a really, really good dude,” Wilson said. “I’m not just saying that because I’m up here; because I have to say that. I genuinely am saying that because he truly is a good person and he’s humble. For someone to have accomplished the things that he’s accomplished, you wouldn’t know that just in a regular conversation with him. I think that’s always special when someone’s grounded and very humble despite having accomplished so much.
“I would anticipate him to continue his college production to the NFL, barring injury. He really hadn’t had any busts in the playbook and I think he’s very perspicacious and always seeking information and very self aware. With that attitude, combined with having elite traits that you can’t teach and a great natural feel for the position, I truly think the sky’s the limit for him.”
(Photo via USA TODAY NETWORK)
Top photo via USA TODAY NETWORK
