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The Houston Texans know they have some unsettled business with Marvin Harrison Jr. How that business goes is largely up to Harrison.
He has looked and sounded rejuvenated since his trade from the Arizona Cardinals. He will also be extension-eligible during the 2027 offseason and, perhaps more pertinent, the Texans must make a decision on his fifth-year option.
Texans general manager Nick Caserio noted that in discussing his logic for making the trade.
“In the end, we felt like–we felt comfortable making the the transaction. We thought it was a player that we had the opportunity to work with. I think some of it was, all right, you have an opportunity to get a player for not only this year and next year, potentially a year beyond that, based on kind of what happens here this year,” Caserio told reporters on October 26.
“Consider the compensation, either comfortable making that decision or you’re not. We felt like, in the end, we’re comfortable making that move, and glad he’s here.”
Marvin Harrison Jr. gets his first touchdown as a Texan!
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Harrison caught his first touchdown as a Texan in Week 7 against the New York Giants. Reunited with college teammate C.J. Stroud, Harrison is up to four receptions for 40 yards and 1 TD in his two weeks with the team.
He also saw one more snap than he did in Week 6, per Pro Football Reference.
Texans in Wait-&-See Mode With Marvin Harrison Jr.
Despite the encouraging, albeit modest, start to Harrison’s tenure, Caserio said the Texans will evaluate him through the rest of the system.
“Probably going to have a better idea a little towards the back half of the year. Like, ‘Where are we?’ We have the player under contract for next season, for sure. And then, you potentially have him under contract for an extra year beyond that, but some of that is contingent upon what happens here this season,” Caserio said.
“I think kind of look at everything, factor everything in, and then make a decision, and you’re either comfortable paying the compensation or not. And in the end, we felt like we were comfortable doing it, and that’s why we made the trade.”
It is difficult to envision the Texans surrendered a second-round pick not to retain Harrison.
However, they also 2025 second-round pick Jayden Higgins (knee, IR) coming back next season.
They also have two-time Pro Bowler Nico Collins topping a WR depth chart that includes former draft picks in Jaylin Noel, Tank Dell, and Xavier Hutchinson, as well as another 2026 trade pickup in Kayshon Boutte.
Marvin Harrison Jr. Trade Could Be Bad for Kayshon Boutte
The Texans surrendered second-year safety Jaylen Reed and swapped late-round draft picks with the New England Patriots for Boutte, but that was befor their deal for Harrison potentially altered the calculus.
“If anything, it makes sense to trade one of their players to get back draft picks,” the Houston Chronicle’s Jonathan M. Alexander wrote on October 26.
“The Texans traded for Boutte before the season, but the receiver’s playing time has dwindled.”
Boutte has seen his snap share decline ever since Week 2. So, the trade for Harrison would only be finalizing a decision that was already made: Boutte, a free agent to be, is not in the Texans’ plans with everyone else healthy.
That is notably why the Patriots felt comfortable trading him away. The Texans can only hope the Cardinals’ comfort in parting with Harrison, a top-four pick in 2024, is a similar situation.
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