Prior to the Cardinals’ game against the Cowboys on Monday night, Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison Sr., the father of Arizona wideout Marvin Harrison Jr., extended some harsh comments toward the offense his son plays for.

"It's very hard for me to watch the Cardinals' offense," Harrison Sr. told Josh Weinfuss of ESPN. "And you can quote me on that.”

Harrison Sr. went as far as to say that he doesn’t attend his son’s games in person to protect his “mental capacity” and said that if he played in the Arizona offense, the Hall of Fame would ask for his gold jacket back.

"What I do know is you can put Marvin Harrison Sr., in my prime, in Arizona right now, and guess what happened?" he said. "Canton, Ohio, is going to send me a prepaid envelope and say, 'Could you please send that jacket back?' So, I'm not speaking for anyone. I'm speaking for me.”

Harrison Jr. and the Cardinals offense put in a good performance in the team’s 27–17 win over the Cowboys on Monday. Going up against one of the NFL’s worst defense, Harrison Jr. caught a career-high seven passes for 96 yards and a touchdown off an impressive move over Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland.

After the game, Harrison Jr. said of his dad’s comments, “I think just the biggest thing is anytime someone speaks on something, you don’t want it to be directly from the player. Everyone has their own opinions. In his article, he said you know that’s how he feels, not how I feel. I think that’s good to mention because I trust in all the guys, I know everyone works really hard throughout the week to be successful, not only for me individually, but as a team. I just try to do my part, be accountable on my end, and do my best to help the team.”

In the article by Weinfuss, Harrison Jr. did note that he understands where his dad is coming from. "It's hard for him to watch. I think it's a combination of what he's used to. Obviously, if you're a parent who's never played football and you see your kid playing, this is all you know, but he's been in the locker room, been on an NFL team, been in the best offense with one of the best quarterbacks of all time. So, he kind of sees it all from a different perspective. I think that's what kind of makes it hard to watch for him,” he said.

It’s been a slower than expected start to the career of Harrison Jr., who was the No. 4 pick in the 2024 NFL draft. Considered the top receiving prospect in a draft class stacked with wideouts, Harrison Jr. has not put up the production expected, has yet to record 100 receiving yards in a game this season and struggled with drops at points of his young career.

Between Harrison Jr.’s move on Bland and his ability to haul in contested catches, there is certainly loads of potential for the young Arizona wideout. The offense definitely needs to continue to prioritize getting their him the ball, and allow him to develop into the player they drafted him to be.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Marvin Harrison Jr. Addresses Dad’s Harsh Comments About Cardinals Offense.

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