The Arizona Cardinals reached a three-year, $75 million extension with up-and-coming wide receiver Michael Wilson, according to ESPN's NFL insiders Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport.
Overall, it was good value for Arizona to retain an underrated piece of its young core. Wilson is coming off a 1,000-yard season, stepping up well in Marvin Harrison's end-of-season absence.
But following that breakout and another underwhelming season by Harrison, Arizona heads into the 2026 season with a legitimate question as to who, if anyone, is the WR1?
Marvin Harrison Jr. faces make-or-break year with Cardinals
Especially given his draft pedigree as a former No. 4 overall selection in 2023, one would assume Harrison gets the nod heading into the season. However, this wide receiver situation in Arizona seems extremely fluid, especially after seeing the connection Wilson displayed with Jacoby Brissett, filling in for Kyler Murray at the time.
Both Wilson and Brissett did enough in their extended auditions to earn new deals this offseason, with Arizona ultimately reworking Brissett's deal to pay him a salary more reflective of a starter. It wouldn't be surprising to see Wilson pick right up where he left off with him last season. If that is the case, it makes you wonder whether Harrison is suddenly expendable.
In some ways, Wilson's new extension and the Cardinals' commitment to him now shift the question marks more towards Harrison's side of the wide receiver pendulum. Could we even go as far as to say it's a make-or-break year three for him in the desert?
We could chalk up the underwhelming 2025 to injury, having played just 12 games. It could even be growing pains, nerves, confidence issues, whatever. But the harsh reality of the NFL is your draft pedigree doesn't come with built-in protections. Look at what happened on cutdown day when the Cardinals moved on from former second-round picks like Sean Murphy-Bunting and BJ Ojulari. Harrison is clearly a starting-caliber player, and it would never go to that extreme, but the point is: just because he's a top-five pick doesn't mean he's not expendable.
Sooner or later, Harrison will stop receiving the benefit of the doubt and simply needs to produce. If not, the Cardinals should be considering WR1 upgrades, and ideally wouldn't be trading the one they just locked down for multiple seasons on a good value.
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