Marvin Harrison Jr. enters the NFL as the surest thing at wide receiver since Calvin Johnson. With fantasy football managers already treating Harrison like a locked-in WR1, is the rookie getting a bit too expensive to take in Best Ball drafts?
Marvin Harrison Jr.’s 2024 Fantasy Outlook
In my first-ever fantasy football league, Marvin Harrison went in the first round. Now, we’re talking about his son as one of the best WR prospects of the past decade. Yes, this makes me feel very old.
The younger Harrison was NFL-ready two years ago. If he could’ve entered the 2023 NFL Draft, he would have done so. The former Buckeye amassed over 1,200 receiving yards in his final two seasons at Ohio State. He also scored 14 touchdowns in both years.
At 6’3”, 209 pounds, Harrison is the ideal size for an outside receiver. He looks every bit like a future NFL WR1 and will be drafted as such.
Currently, it’s difficult to fully evaluate Harrison’s fantasy value. He’s opted to not participate in the NFL Combine drills. Of course, we don’t need to see him run a 40-yard dash or do a three-cone drill to know he’s got great speed and agility. We can see that on the field.
Harrison is already an incredibly polished route runner. He is able to win at all levels. With excellent body control, Harrison can adjust to poorly thrown balls on the fly and make catches other receivers can’t. I have zero doubts about his ability to make an immediate impact in the NFL. The question is whether that will translate into fantasy points.
Should You Draft Harrison in 2024 Best Ball Leagues?
The writing has been on the wall for many months. It’s safe to say we’ve never seen a rookie receiver like Harrison in fantasy football. That’s not to say he’s the greatest prospect of all time, nor is he guaranteed to have a Justin Jefferson-like rookie season. It’s more that we’ve never seen such an overwhelming belief in a rookie being this good.
Marvin Harrison Jr will be the highest drafted rookie WR in the history of fantasy football.
— Katz (@jasonkatz13) November 25, 2023
The above late-November tweet of mine proved to be quite prescient. To my knowledge, the highest-drafted rookie wide receiver of all time was previously 2015 Amari Cooper, whose price was inflated due to the historically great 2014 rookie WR class. Cooper went in the fourth round. I thought Harrison had a shot to crack the third. Somehow, I still undershot it.
Currently, Harrison isn’t just going in the second round — he’s going in the top half of the second round. I am supremely confident Harrison will be a perennial top-18 fantasy pick. He’s the real deal and the surest thing at wide receiver since Calvin Johnson.
But the landing spot matters. Harrison could very well end up on a team like the New England Patriots or Washington Commanders — teams that currently lack a quarterback.
What enabled guys like Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase to have such elite rookie seasons was not only their talent, it was playing with Kirk Cousins and Joe Burrow. If Harrison ends up on a team without a viable starting quarterback, his current Best Ball price tag is going to look quite expensive come May.
I definitely want pieces of Harrison this season. He has to be on some of my teams. But if his ADP holds, he has to be as good as advertised to even return par value.
KEEP READING: 2024 Best Ball Rankings
Right now, Best Ball drafters are paying for the best WR of this class in a favorable fantasy situation. If that comes to fruition, then he might be worth his current price. It’s not going up, though. There’s no realistic scenario where taking Harrison now ends up being a good deal. As a result, I need to wait and see where Harrison ends up before deciding if I’m willing to pay the piper to draft him.