Cardinals' Marvin Harrison Jr. Talks Work Ethic: 'I Want to Be Great so Bad'

Despite some up and down moments so far in his rookie season, Marvin Harrison Jr.'s drive to fulfill his sky-high potential has never wavered.

The Arizona Cardinals rookie told ESPN's Josh Weinfuss that he wants "to be great so bad" that it constantly pushes him forward.

"I just want to be successful," Harrison said. "I want to be great so bad. I want to help my team so bad, and I'm just always going to put my best foot forward for the team, and I think that's really just where it comes from: just go out there, have fun."

The reactions to Harrison's first NFL season have been wild to follow. There were concerns about his speed after Week 1 when he had just one catch for four yards against the Buffalo Bills.

Those questions were quickly put to rest the following week when Harrison put up 130 yards and two touchdowns on four catches against the Los Angeles Rams.

That game kicked off a run of three straight games with a touchdown reception for the Ohio State alum, but he has only had more than 70 yards once in his last seven games. It was when he had 111 yards and a touchdown in Arizona's 28-27 win over the Miami Dolphins in Week 8.

Now the bigger issue seems to be about Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzing's usage of Harrison.

Yahoo Sports' Chris Allen noted prior to Week 8 that nearly half of Harrison's targets at that point in the season had come on "high-variance" throws (go balls, deep post, out routes) with only six targets on crossing routes that allow for a high-probability of yards after the catch.

While Harrison is capable of winning down the field, he was touted as a prospect for being able to run a full route tree and make plays at all three levels.

There's absolutely no reason to be concerned that Harrison won't be great in the NFL. It's just taking time for him and the coaching staff in Arizona to put all of the pieces together that allows him to succeed consistently from week to week.