The Arizona Cardinals suffered an unfortunate injury to star wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. during their last game. After making a catch, his head slammed against the turf, and he was forced to leave the game for a concussion test. The test was positive, and Harrison was ruled out for the game.
That was a significant loss for the Cardinals, but how long will Harrison be out with this injury? With a concussion, the return-to-play process is typically straightforward; if the player passes the concussion protocol, they are eligible to return to play. So that is what everyone will look for this week.
Marvin Harrison Jr. Needs to Pass the Concussion Protocol
This is not the first concussion Harrison has had during his career. He was ruled out of a game last season with a concussion, but that did not force him to miss any additional games. The hope is that Harrison will be able to pass the concussion protocol at some point this week and be ready to play on Sunday.
However, Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon revealed that he is still in concussion protocol. Here is the play where Harrison Jr. got hurt, and you can see why he was held out for the game.
The Cardinals’ star returned to practice on Wednesday and Thursday, but was a limited participant on both days. It’s a step in the right direction, but his status for Week 7 will depend on whether he can clear the concussion protocol in time.
The Cardinals would be in trouble without Harrison, their top receiver and a key difference-maker on offense. Even though he has not had the production many people expect, Harrison is still a weapon in that offense.
According to PFSN’s WR Impact metric, Harrison has a WR Impact Score of 77.8 on the season. That ranks 33rd among NFL receivers, but he has the potential to be much better. Without Harrison, the Cardinals had to rely on Trey McBride, Zay Jones, and Michael Wilson as pass catchers.
Harrison’s Fantasy Outlook
Concussion symptoms resulted in an early departure over the weekend for Harrison, and with Arizona’s bye coming in Week 8, I’m tentatively making other plans for this weekend.
The Cardinals’ WR1 had been useful in three of the first five weeks this season, and while the yardage totals are spotty, he showed signs of turning a corner with Kyler Murray.
Now, we have injuries to both parties to navigate, and that makes this a situation I’d rather not invest in if I can help it.
Harrison has a TD or a 30+ yard reception in four of five weeks with Murray under center, and that makes him a low-end WR2 moving forward when both parts of that tandem are on the field.
Should Harrison play without Murray this weekend, he’ll be ranked as nothing more than a low-end WR3: think Tee Higgins in the Jake Browning era.