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Marvin Harrison Jr. Had Saddest Response to Dropped Pass in Loss to 49ers

Marvin Harrison Jr. appeared disheartened while speaking to reporters after losing to the 49ers.

Eva Geitheim

Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. dropped a critical pass in their loss to the 49ers on Sunday.
Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. dropped a critical pass in their loss to the 49ers on Sunday. / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
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There were a number of missed opportunities for both the 49ers and Cardinals in San Francisco's 16-15 win on Sunday, and Marvin Harrison Jr.'s dropped pass in the third quarter was among those mistakes for Arizona.

On the Cardinals' lone drive of the third quarter, Harrison Jr. got wide open down the field and quarterback Kyler Murray threw the ball to him. There were no 49ers defenders within five yards of Harrison Jr., but he could not hold onto the ball.

Had Harrison Jr. caught the ball, he would have gained at least 25 yards on the play, and could have gone for an even larger gain depending on how quickly 49ers linebacker Fred Warner closed in on him.

Though the Cardinals scored a field goal on that drive, that series might have resulted in more points if Harrison Jr. secured the ball and earned a huge gain. In a game decided by one point, it's those plays that can loom large in players’ minds after the clock hits zero.

Following that mistake and a close loss to a divisional opponent that drops the Cardinals to 2-1, Harrison Jr. appeared dejected after the game.

"A lot of emotion. Just disappointed really. I know what I put into the game, so doesn't feel the best," Harrison Jr. said.

"Everybody got a job to do. I'm not doing mine at a high enough level at the moment," Harrison Jr. said. "I think I know what I'm capable of, to go out there and play nowhere near the best of my abilities, it's frustrating, it hurts the team. I've got to get better."

Widely viewed as the top receiver in the 2024 draft class, Harrison Jr. has not fully lived up to expectations through the first 20 games of his career. He finished his rookie season with 62 catches for 885 yards and eight touchdowns, and has 10 receptions for 142 yards and one touchdown through three games this year.

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Eva Geitheim
EVA GEITHEIM

Eva Geitheim is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in December 2024, she wrote for Newsweek, Gymnastics Now and Dodgers Nation. A Bay Area native, she has a bachelor's in communications from UCLA. When not writing, she can be found baking or re-watching Gilmore Girls.

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