Cardinals' Kyler Murray, HC defend Marvin Harrison Jr. after latest drop in loss to Seahawks

The latest brutal drop committed by Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. resulted in an interception halfway through the second quarter of Thursday night's home game versus the Seattle Seahawks.

While Harrison later completed a highlight-reel touchdown catch with under six minutes to play in the fourth quarter, the Cardinals nevertheless fell to 2-2 on the season via a 23-20 defeat. Following the contest, Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray defended his struggling teammate. 

Kyler Murray knows he needs Marvin Harrison Jr.

"He needs me, I need him," Murray said about Harrison, per Josh Weinfuss of ESPN. "This is a team sport, four-quarter game, and I understand he's not coming out of the game. I don't want him to come out of the game. So, we got to get this going. And that's really just what it is. Just conversations on the sideline, keeping his confidence up."

Many expected Harrison would take a major leap this season after the fourth overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft produced an up-and-down rookie campaign. However, he has thus far become more known for dropping catchable passes than for being the elite wideout many thought he'd become roughly 12 months ago. 

Over the first four contests of this season, Harrison recorded 16 receptions for 208 yards and two touchdowns. Murray and Co. now hope that Harrison's fourth-quarter grab will prove to be the start of a needed turnaround. 

"He came up clutch in the stretch," Murray added about Harrison. "That's part of football. I got the utmost confidence in Marv. I will continue to have the confidence in Marv. We just got to go back to the drawing board and be better. ... The whole offense understands that we got to start faster and play better, complementary football. Because right now it's too all over the place, and it's not good enough."

Jonathan Gannon sends message about how Marvin Harrison Jr. can bounce back

Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon said that Harrison was "fantastic" in the second half of Thursday's game. Gannon also indicated that Harrison may be dealing with the "yips" as a second-year pro. 

"He wants to help the team win," Gannon said about Harrison. "He gets down on himself. He's got to let that go and control the controllables, which for me for him is just play fast. Control your effort, your mode of play and play fast, and I thought that's what he did."

The Cardinals will now have a bit of a break before they host the Tennessee Titans on Oct. 5. 0-3 Tennessee plays at the 0-3 Houston Texans this coming Sunday afternoon.