James

Conner

Petzing said Conner is the top running back for the Cardinals backfield, while Trey Benson will need to be ready. The 29-year-old Conner has not played a full season in his career yet. Though he has missed eight games over the last two seasons, it seems the Cardinals will give him a heavy workload when active, similar to his three straight seasons of over 16 touches per game. Meanwhile, the rookie Benson is one of the most valuable handcuffs in fantasy football, ready to take on a large workload should Conner miss time.

The Arizona coaching staff, Venerable said, “loves” Conner and his tough running and veteran leadership. “The best version of this offense last year ran through [Conner],” Venerable said during an interview with Rotoworld’s Patrick Daugherty and Denny Carter. “James Conner is one of their best players.” Venerable suggested Michael Carter could mix in behind Conner, rather than rookie RB Trey Benson functioning as the clear RB2. Benson, the 66th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, is considered an explosive back, though he never had more than 20 rushing attempts in a single game during his college career. We would expect Benson to be the Cardinals’ lead back should the 29-year-old Conner once again miss time with injury in 2024.

Conner enters the offseason with one year remaining on his three-year contract with the Cardinals, although the team has an out that they could exercise with only $3 million in dead cap money. The 2024 draft is more top-heavy at quarterback and wide receiver but the team could elect to move the fourth overall pick in exchange for more maneuverability as they continue to rebuild the franchise. That could give them more room to turn to youth in the backfield and move on from Conner. Conner finishes the 2023 season with 208 carries for 1,040 yards and seven touchdowns, adding 27 receptions in 13 games.

Rejuvenated after his early-season injury issues, Conner is now up to six touchdowns over his past four games. His 128 yards rushing were easily a new season-high, while the scores were of paramount importance. No. 1 was a five-yard receiving strike that tied the game at 21-21 late in the third quarter. No. 2 was a rugged two-yard rush that proved to be the difference in the 35-31 victory. Conner was routinely tacking on extra yardage and might have secured a third score had he not needed to briefly depart and “walk something off,” letting Michael Carter snag a six-yard scoring reception. The Seahawks are on tap for Week 18.

No other Arizona running back had more than two carries. Conner had his workload role back and took advantage with some screen pass receptions — one of which he turned into a 16-yard touchdown catch. He now has at least 17 touches in all of his past three outings. Conner profiles as a top-15 PPR option for Week 17 against the Eagles, assuming Kyler Murray will continue to check down.

Conner had a few nice runs in what was otherwise a struggle for the Cardinals’ offense until late. He didn’t do much in the receiving game hauling in just three catches for three yards. Still, with 17 total touches he remains a high-end RB2 option for the remainder of the fantasy playoffs.

Conner’s first two-touchdown effort of the year doubled his season total on the ground. The 100-yard outing was his first since Week 2. Conner still remained a surprising nonentity in the passing game, totaling zero catches on two targets. Conner ripped a few chunk gains and was continually grinding out tough yards vs. the Steelers’ vulnerable run defense in swamp-like conditions. He now heads on bye and will have little shot at repeating today’s RB1 effort against the 49ers’ elite defense in Week 15. He’ll be on the RB2/3 borderline for that one.

Conner didn’t get a chance to get going as the Cardinals got behind quickly and had to abandon the run. In the receiving game, Conner wasn’t much more successful as he was stopped at the line of scrimmage on nearly all of his receptions. It was a tough performance, but he remains a solid RB2.

In his second game after a serious knee injury, Conner lost out on some passing down work to Tony Jones, a practice squad running back. Conner played 41 of 62 offensive snaps for Arizona on the day. Conner appears fully healthy — breaking tackles and getting yards after contact against Houston — and should get more touches going forward. He’ll be a low-end RB2 option in Week 12 against the Rams.

Conner returned from his injury that had him sidelined since Week 5 and looked effective as usual. He failed to register a target, but 16 runs sufficed for a player who’s been out a while. Conner will continue to be a high-end RB2 against the Texans in Week 11.