Cardinals target Ohio State WR Marvin Harrison Jr. in Brugler’s 2024 NFL mock draft

The Arizona Cardinals have much of 2024 to play out, but The Athletic’s Dane Brugler is ready to make a pick in his first 2024 NFL mock draft.

Brugler admits that, while neither Arizona head coach Jonathan Gannon nor general manager Monti Ossenfort drafted quarterback Kyler Murray or signed him to his massive extension, it’s nearly impossible to trade the 2019 No. 1 overall pick.

So he says the team should stick with the signal-caller for one more season and target “one of the best wide receiver prospects of the past few decades,” in Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr.

The 6-foot-4 junior this past regular season had 67 catches for 1,211 yards and 14 touchdowns, including eight games over 100 yards receiving. His biggest game came against Penn State, when Harrison posted 11 catches for 162 yards and a score.

Also, there would be a fair bit of symmetry to the pick.

This pick would come on the 20-year anniversary of Arizona selecting Larry Fitzgerald at No. 3 in 2004, which is interesting because Harrison reminds me of a leaner version of Fitzgerald.

Who else do the Cardinals pick in Brugler’s 2024 NFL mock draft?

Of course, the Cardinals have more than one first-round pick this year, following their 2023 draft-day trade with the Houston Texans.

At No. 17, Brugler has the Cardinals drafting edge rusher Jared Verse out of Florida State.

The redshirt junior out of Dayton, Ohio, compiled 35 tackles with seven sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss this past season for the Seminoles. His biggest game came during rivalry week against Florida at Gainesville when he had 2.5 sacks, six tackles and three tackles for loss.

Says Brugler:

With his get-off, play strength and character, Verse is an ideal fit for what Gannon is trying to build in Arizona.