As soon as he takes the field this season, Marvin Harrison Jr. will make history. That's because Harrison will be wearing the first-ever football cleats designed by New Balance.
Harrison, who signed with New Balance earlier this offseason, helped unveil the company's groundbreaking cleats. The first receiver selected in this year's draft, Harrison will likely wear New Balance's Prodigy cleat, a gold and white low top that is designed for skill players. The Fortress, a black and gold hightop, is featured "for the players waging in the game's most intense battles."
"Our first conversations about stepping onto the gridiron kicked off in 2020," New Balance said on their website. "The goal -- making the best-fitting, most comfortable cleat in the game -- was simple. Getting there was not.
"We focused on an intelligent approach to product creation that combined our history of best-in-class craftsmanship with cutting-edge innovation. The prototype designs were wear-tested in our Sports Research Lab by players at every level, including Chase Young and Will Anderson Jr. These insights proved vital throughout the process.
"The game deserves better. We won't settle for anything less than setting a new standard."
New Balance has found a promising player to showcase their new cleats in Harrison, who is already earning praise from Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray.
"I think that takes us to another level," Murray said, via ESPN. "When you got a guy out there that is capable of winning one-on-ones, obviously he's got to go do it and he knows that. We all know it, but as far as manipulating coverage and stuff like that, you got a guy out there that can do that and even if he's not open, he's open. I'm excited to be able to build that with him, but when he does what he does, yeah, I fully expect our offense to be top of the league."