Why Hasn’t Marvin Harrison Jr. Signed an NFLPA Licensing Deal?

Marvin Harrison Jr. is holding out, but not the type of holdout NFL teams are used to seeing. 

Harrison, whom the Cardinals took No. 4 in last week’s NFL draft, has yet to sign the preliminary NFL Players’ Association licensing agreement, which allows the use of his likeness on merchandise such as jerseys and trading cards or in the popular video game, Madden. 

Always take “reporting” from a radio host or TV personality with a grain of salt, but Pat McAfee said that sporting manufacturer Fanatics was the reason for the holdup. Harrison is the son of legendary NFL wideout Marvin Harrison, and both McAfee and Harrison Sr. spent their entire pro careers with the Colts. (Harrison Sr. retired in 2008, a year before McAfee was drafted by the Colts.)

Citing sources from Harrison Jr.’s camp, McAfee said standout college players are often offered merchandising deals with Fanatics in college, typically in a four-year deal that follows them to the pros, which pay athletes below their earning potential once they hit the pros. Harrison supposedly declined the licensing deal in college and is now trying to negotiate at the pro price.

“I guess there was an offer made to Marvin Harrison Jr. whenever he was a sophomore in college, which happens to a lot of guys, where if you sign it, a card deal, an autograph deal, it’s for four years,” McAfee said on his show. “So it goes all the way into your second year of the NFL. Marvin Harrison, who doesn’t need the money, said, ‘We’re not taking that deal. We’re not signing the deal.’

“What we have been told is the price of Marvin Harrison Jr. as a rookie and second-year in the NFL is not the same as when he was a sophomore in college,” McAfee added. “And there’s a lot of people that signed that deal. And hopefully, this will all get worked out.”

An article on the Cardinals’ team website said that as the standoff continues, Harrison jerseys still do not exist, but he should have a number picked by the time the team starts rookie minicamp May 10.

A Fanatics spokesperson did not immediately return a request by Front Office Sports for comment. 

McAfee said Harrison plans to be a member of the NFLPA when all is said and done, but will continue to hold out until a better deal comes his way.