We all know how the NFL draft played out for the Chicago Bears. They took Caleb Williams #1 overall, then turned around and scooped up Rome Odunze at #9 an hour later. It was the first time in NFL history a team had taken a quarterback and wide receiver in the top 10 together. The organization was thrilled with the outcome, while the draft community gave them stellar grades for it. What people don't know is the outcome could've been very different. Marvin Harrison Jr. almost made sure of that.
The Ohio State star was one of the most enigmatic players going into the draft. He'd done none of the typical pre-draft stuff. No workouts, no scouting combine, and no medical tests. His decision was centered around the desire to focus on preparing for the NFL rather than testing drills. However, it appears there was another motivation behind it. Rumors persisted he was trying to tank his stock just enough to reach the Bears' spot at #9, hoping to pair with Williams. Albert Breer of the MMQB did an in-depth exclusive on the team's pre-draft process. He officially confirmed this rumor.
In the end, it did no damage to either guy.
The Chicago Bears got Williams’s medicals on the 30 visit, and 31 teams that are now his rivals don’t have information that could be damaging to him or Chicago. The Arizona Cardinals, meanwhile, are ecstatic to get a player who will be ready to hit the ground running at rookie minicamp and OTAs after training with the Ohio State strength staff as he would if he were suiting up to play football for the Buckeyes in the fall.
Williams, for his part, only visited the Bears, while Harrison only visited Chicago and Arizona.
If Marvin Harrison Jr. hadn't gone to Arizona, he wanted Chicago.
That pretty much appears to be the truth. There were rumblings the Cardinals might trade down from #4 overall, allowing another team to come up for a quarterback. If that had happened, Harrison likely hoped the teams between #5 and #8 would get the hint that he had no desire to play for them. It didn't matter in the end. Arizona stayed put and took him at #4, making him the first non-QB off the board. Kyler Murray got his next go-to receiver. Would Harrison have gotten his wish if they hadn't?
That seems unlikely. The New York Giants took wide receiver Malik Nabers at #6 overall. It is a fair assumption they would've opted for Marvin Harrison Jr. had he also been on the board. Then again, it is possible his pre-draft antic might have rubbed some people the wrong way. Great players fall in the draft all the time and for dumber reasons. It would've been wild if he had fallen to Chicago, but this will go down as another in a long line of fascinating what-ifs.
