Marvin Harrison Jr. had his breakout game on Monday night against the Dallas Cowboys, but that could be the start of something special.
The Arizona Cardinals announced on Tuesday that quarterback Jacoby Brissett will be the team’s starter for Week 10, and then announced on Wednesday that Kyler Murray was going on injured reserve.
That means Brissett will be the starter for at least the near future, and the Cardinals quarterback said his connection with Harrison is only continuing to grow.
What Can Jacoby Brissett and Marvin Harrison Jr. Accomplish?
Harrison had his best game of the season on Monday night, collecting a career-high seven catches for 96 yards and a touchdown.
However, the Cardinals were playing a Cowboys defense that ranks last in the NFL against wide receivers. Now, the challenge is for Harrison to grow from his breakout night.
With Brissett at quarterback for the Cardinals for the near future, he has high expectations for his No. 1 receiver.
“I definitely could see him (Marvin Harrison Jr.) becoming one of the better receivers in this league,” Brissett said. “I think the rapport started back in OTAs with a lot of these guys and me trying to learn them.”
Harrison was drafted with the No. 5 pick in 2024, and being one of the better receivers in the league is what many fans expected from the jump.
However, after a solid rookie season with 885 receiving yards, Harrison hadn’t really gotten going in 2025 until Monday night. But Brissett knows the talent is there.
“His skillset. He’s big. He’s fast. He can catch. He can run,” Brissett said. “He’s tough, you know, he wants the ball in those types of situations, which is probably the most important part of it.
“In those situations, he looks forward to those, and as an offense, I think we do too. He came out on top in a lot of those situations in this past game.”
The situations Brissett is referring to are one-on-one matchups. The Cowboys played the most man coverage the Cardinals had seen all season on Monday night, and Harrison thrived.
Brissett said their connection is only continuing to grow, and that happens through more practice with each other.
However, he did joke about how the roles have changed between the two now that he’s the starting quarterback.
“It’s just communication. The funny thing is, when I was throwing to him after practice, I was doing what he wanted me to do, kind of, and now it’s kind of you do what I say a little bit,” Brissett said. “You get a chance to talk about football, you can talk about other stuff.
“He was going through a rough time, and you sit there and you’re like, ‘Alright, let’s throw for 10 minutes.’ And for seven of the minutes you’re kind of just talking about B.S. … so it’s just an opportunity to continue to learn your teammates and fine-tune the relationship that when you get on the field, it’s stronger.”
That quarterback-to-receiver relationship certainly felt strong on Monday night.
Brissett mentioned Harrison was going through a rough time, and not only could the Cardinals quarterback be there as a friend through it, but now he can be the one on the field to help Harrison find his groove.
The Cardinals’ young receiver has always been quiet and not one to speak up, and that can somewhat be the same about the mature, veteran quarterback in Brissett.
Harrison went to Brissett to just get some extra reps in and connect after practices, and now it’s blossomed into a relationship of trust between the Cardinals duo.
Everyone saw what Arizona’s offense can do on Monday night when Harrison and his quarterback are clicking. The two combined for three third-down conversions, and Harrison had four targets on the opening drive.
Since Brissett has taken over at quarterback, he’s ranked No. 2 in the NFL among all quarterbacks in third-down conversion percentage, according to PFSN’s QB Impact, and a lot of it has to do with his trust and patience in the pocket.
If the Cardinals offense wants to continue clicking and hit its peak, Arizona needs Harrison to be a No. 1 receiver alongside tight end Trey McBride, and Brissett is confident in his ability to do so.