Could the Raiders be in the market for Marvin Harrison Jr.?
The Raiders don’t have a clear no. 1 target at wide receiver and even Tre Tucker somewhat fits that description at the moment; Tucker isn’t under contact beyond this year.
Marvin Harrison Jr. is a wide receiver many believe could be traded before the November 10 trade deadline, and if the Cardinals are willing to listen to offers for Harrison Jr., ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler believes the price might be as low as a fourth-round pick.
“Teams are continuing to watch the Marvin Harrison Jr. situation closely, wondering if he would become available,” Fowler reported on Wednesday.
“[Harrison] would have a market, though not for a high pick (possibly a quality Day 3 pick, as one team forecasted). Harrison, the former No. 4 overall pick who has struggled in Arizona, showed a slight uptick last week vs. San Francisco with three catches for 43 yards on five targets. But tight end Trey McBride and wide receiver Michael Wilson are clearly the Cardinals’ primary options.”
“Harrison is a player to monitor closer to the deadline. Teams are still trying to assess what has happened with someone who seemed like a slam dunk out of Ohio State. ‘I don’t think one scout expected this. I didn’t see all the drops and lack of competing [in college],’ one team evaluator pointed out. ‘Very weird. Probably needs a fresh start. Looks too big for him right now.'”
Raiders insider not optimistic on Harrison Jr.
On his podcast last week, Sports Illustrated insider Hondo Carpenter talked about the idea of the Raiders trading for Harrison, and he leaned strongly against the idea.
“I think you stay the course,” Carpenter said on the Las Vegas Raiders Insider podcast.
“If you’re talking about getting Justin Jefferson, oh year, the whole game changes right there for me because he’s already proven. With Marvin Harrison you’re just getting somebody else’s problem… maybe it is a change of scenery [he needs], but you’ve got to get him cheap enough because you don’t know that. With multiple quarterbacks and coaches… I’m also talking based on some things I’ve heard from people that I trust.”
It would be interesting to know what is going on with Harrison Jr. in Arizona because there is no question he was one of the most talented collegiate wide receivers to enter the draft in years.
Harrison Jr. was drafted fourth overall by the Cardinals the same year (2024) the Raiders landed Brock Bowers with the 13th pick.
Harrison Jr. probably won’t end up in Silver & Black, but for the cost of a fourth-round pick the gamble might be worth the risk – especially for a team like the Raiders, who have arguably the least exciting wide receiver room in the league.
x: @raidersbeat