The Arizona Cardinals had the No. 4 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft and with a variety of options, they went with Ohio State wide receiver, Marvin Harrison Jr. While the No. 1 pick this year, Caleb Williams, was a sure bet to go to the Chicago Bears, where the other players in the draft would fall was not as much of a guarantee.
Harrison Jr. did not participate in a few areas of the pre-draft process, but that did not deter the Cardinals. He skipped workouts and interviews at the scouting combine and Ohio State Pro Day to "prepare for the NFL season."
General Manager Monti Ossenfort gave some insight into the selection, saying that even without Harrison Jr. participating in some offseason work, the team felt confident in the rising rookie.
"Yeah, I'd say with Marvin, a unique case. He made the decisions that he made to approach the draft process like he did," Ossenfort said (via SiriusXM NFL Radio). "But you're right, we did get a good look at him working out -- we had that tape from last year when he ran routes at C.J. Stroud's pro day, so we did check that box."
He added that opting out of part of the scouting process is something he has seen before from prospects.
"And I think there's a number of prospects in every draft that don't check off every box -- whether it's for a medical reason or a personal choice, whatever it is, they may not complete a workout or they may not do everything like everybody else does," Ossenfort said. "So, it wasn't the first time that we've had to complete an evaluation on a player without every box filled and it's certainly not going to be the last."
Ossenfort doubled down that the tape they had on the player who would become their first-round selection was enough for them to be sold on his talents and potential in the NFL.
"But we felt very strongly about our evaluation of Marvin off the tape, off of last year's pro day,'' said Ossenfort. "And then what really sealed it for us was when Marvin came in for a [top] 30 visit and we got to spend an entire day with him and just really find out who the person was, what made him tick, and just the way he approached his job. So, you know, we had plenty to evaluate Marvin on and certainly more than enough to pull his card off the board at No. 4."
In three seasons, Harrison Jr. had 155 receptions for 2,613 yards with 31 touchdowns at Ohio State. He finished last season with 67 receptions for 1,211 yards and 14 touchdowns in 12 games.
