GLENDALE — The Arizona Cardinals were blown out by the Detroit Lions in Week 5, though the scoreboard wasn't close to the biggest storyline in the desert.
The Cardinals traded Marvin Harrison Jr. to the Houston Texans right as the ball was kicked off at State Farm Stadium, putting an end to a saga that started earlier in the weekend when reports first emerged about Harrison departing Arizona.
Harrison now lands in Houston while the Cardinals recoup some solid draft capital in return.
After the game, reporters were able to speak with some members of the team on the trade. Here's what they said:
Mike LaFleur
"I just thought it was in the best interest of this club," said LaFleur in his post-game press conference.
Previously this offseason, LaFleur told reporters his job was to maximize Harrison's talent. Through four games, Harrison — the former No. 4 overall pick — had just five catches on the season.
"I'm not going to totally get into that right now. I really like Marvin Harrison. He's a good person. I wish him well. We did what we thought was in the best interest of the Cardinals," LaFleur said when asked what went wrong.
"Any guy that does not play to the level that I feel like they're capable of, I'm always going to put that on me and coaching in general."
The news caught many by surprise, as early Saturday morning was when reports first emerged of the Cardinals trading Harrison. When asked when Arizona came to that decision, LaFleur said:
"I'm going to keep the details tight with us."
The Cardinals were suddenly without one of their biggest names on the offensive side of the ball, and they clearly struggled in Week 5.
"I don't think it was a distraction at all. It's not why we didn't play well today," said LaFleur before he was asked if Harrison wanted to be here in Arizona.
"I'm not going to answer for Marv."
Jacoby Brissett
"It definitely happened fast. Obviously outside of football that's a person that meant a lot for me and I had a really good relationship with. You never want to see somebody leave. Obviously wish him the best on whatever he has coming up next for him, but yeah it's tough. We all have a really good relationship with him in the locker room so losing him is big," he said post-game.
The Cardinals opted for Jalen Brooks at their X receiver spot, who had two receptions for 16 yards against Detroit. Kendrick Bourne led all Cardinals receivers with five receptions for 70 yards.
"It's football, so it's just like an injury. When somebody gets hurt, next person has to step up and pick up the slack, so I think that's more what it is," Brissett said on replacing Harrison.
He was also asked if he believed the trade was a distraction.
"I wouldn't say a distraction. We found out Saturday and got to go play in the game Sunday, so got to ignore the noise and block out all distractions."
Brissett also added the team was addressed by both Harrison and LaFleur on Saturday morning.
"He told us... Marv and coach [LaFleur] ... We found out before ya'll did."
Brissett also mentioned plenty of players had strong personal relationships with Harrison, which made the move a bit tough.
"It's tough. It's a person we all have a relationship with outside of football. As much as everybody says the business is the business, that doesn't make it easy. That makes it toughest because it is part of the business," said Brissett.
"It's somebody I know I'll miss and a lot of guys in that locker room will miss. I'm sure a lot of us are rooting for Marv."
When asked why Harrison ultimately didn't flourish in the desert, he said:
"I can't answer that question."
Garrett Williams
Williams was one of few players media got to speak with in the locker room.
"Surprising, but at the end of the day it's business. We hope the best for him, he's a great player. For us here we just got to keep moving forward and do what we gotta do," Williams said when asked about the trade.
"It's Sunday. We've got a game to play and we're all professionals. We got a game to play. Like I said we all rock with Marv, we want the best for him. But the guys here, we have a game. We just focus on that."
Williams also mentioned the business is unpredictable, but nobody is going to feel bad for the Cardinals after they dealt Harrison.
"I think it all ties back to what I was saying about being professional with it. Just understanding it's unfortunate, it kind of sucks, whatever, but at the end of the day when you have a game on Sunday, you guys [media], fans, nobody is going to feel bad for us not playing good because we're upset about one of our teammates being traded," he said.
"Especially because that's the nature of how this business goes. It's unpredictable. It's one of those things you can't really prepare for, you got to just do what you do."
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