Marvin Harrison — Week 1: One Catch, the Day's Biggest Throw

13 to seven, Cardinals, 11 27 left in the third quarter, second and eight at the Arizona 12. Jacoby Brissett threw deep left to Marvin Harrison, who caught it and was tackled at the Arizona 45, 33 yards. That was worth +2.8 expected points added — expected points added is what a play was worth given down, distance and field position — and 6.2 points of win probability, the chance of winning the game after the play against before it. By expected points it was the most valuable of the 38 pass plays Arizona ran all afternoon. It was also Harrison's only catch. The drive had started at the Arizona 10 with a two-yard run by Jeremiyah Love and ended at the Chargers 15 with a field goal, 16 to seven.

The line: three targets, one catch, 33 yards, one first down, +0.9 expected points on the targets. The first target was second and eight at the Chargers 41 with 13 34 left in the first quarter, scoreless, on the opening drive: incomplete short middle, −0.9; Brissett scrambled 11 yards for the first down on the next snap, and the drive ended in Love's touchdown. The third was second and 15 at the Arizona 46 with three 27 left in the third, up 16 to 14: incomplete deep left, −1.0, and after a five-yard throw to Trey McBride on third and 15 Arizona punted. One target before halftime, two after. The three targets carried 71 air yards between them; the ball travelled a long way when it went to him, and it went to him three times.

Three targets were fifth on the team. The ball went 13 times to McBride, eight to Kendrick Bourne, seven to Michael Wilson, four to Love, three to Harrison and two to Tyler Allgeier, none without a receiver. Among the wide receivers it was Bourne eight, Wilson seven, Harrison three. Brissett threw for 277 yards, and Harrison's one catch was 33 of them.

Back in June the preview made no call on Harrison — the 30-second receiver at pick 75 after a 30-sixth-per-game finish, priced right on top of the production, with six targets a game the volume that had never been alpha volume, a defined role at the X in Mike LaFleur's offense, and an unsettled passer. The watch items were who was under center and the target share, because until the volume climbed the talent was theoretical. Sunday the passer was Brissett for all 38 pass plays, the share was three, and the talent was one deep ball that was the best throw of the day. One game with three targets is the kind of week the preview said it could not price, and the number it wanted to see climb has not moved yet. Arizona is home to the Seahawks on Sunday the twentieth.

_Data via nflverse._