The Arizona Cardinals formally announced Monday, Oct. 12, that they have agreed to trade wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. to the Houston Texans, closing a short and unexpectedly quiet Arizona tenure for the No. 4 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
The deal is subject to Harrison passing a physical. According to the Cardinals’ announcement and the team’s official transaction log, Arizona will receive Houston’s 2027 second-round pick and a 2027 seventh-round pick originally belonging to San Francisco. Houston receives Harrison and Arizona’s 2027 sixth-round pick.
Put another way, the Cardinals are sending away Harrison and moving from the sixth to the seventh round in that part of the exchange to add a future second-round selection. The value of the return will remain uncertain until the 2027 draft order is set and Arizona uses, trades or otherwise converts those picks.
A three-season Arizona run ends
Harrison leaves Arizona after 33 games with 108 receptions, 1,578 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns, according to the team. His annual totals fell after a promising rookie year, and his role was limited through four games this season.
He finished 2024 with 62 catches for 885 yards and eight touchdowns, tying the Cardinals’ rookie record for touchdown catches. In 2025, he recorded 41 receptions for 608 yards and four touchdowns in 12 games. Through four games this season, Harrison had five catches for 85 yards and one touchdown on 12 targets.
Those three season lines add up to the career totals reported by the team and help explain the size of the decision: Arizona is parting with a former top-five pick less than two and a half years after drafting him.
General manager Monti Ossenfort said in the team’s statement that the organization believed the move was in the Cardinals’ best interest and thanked Harrison for his contributions. Coach Mike LaFleur said Sunday that he also accepted responsibility when a player did not perform to the level the coaching staff believed possible.
What changes for the offense in Glendale
Harrison was held out of Sunday’s 45-21 loss to Detroit at State Farm Stadium while the trade was being completed. Without him, Arizona’s receiving group leaned on Michael Wilson, Jalen Brooks and Kendrick Bourne alongside tight end Trey McBride.
The Lions still devoted extra coverage to McBride and Wilson, according to the Cardinals, leaving Arizona to find production elsewhere. Brooks drew seven targets but caught two passes. That game offered the first practical look at the offense the Cardinals will carry forward for the rest of the season.
For West Valley fans, the immediate change will be visible at the Cardinals’ remaining home games in Glendale: one of the franchise’s most recognizable recent draft picks is gone, and a receiving corps already being reshaped must replace even the threat Harrison created in coverage.
Houston reunites Harrison with quarterback C.J. Stroud, his former Ohio State teammate. Arizona’s return is longer-term. The second-round pick cannot help the current roster, and the final judgment on the trade will depend on what the Cardinals turn it into in 2027.
Featured image: AI-generated editorial illustration by West Valley Post. It does not depict an actual scene or official team artwork.
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