Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner's status for Sunday's much-anticipated Week 15 showdown against the New England Patriots is uncertain, but his coach Mike Tomlin is not ruling him out, at least not yet.
Here's what Tomlin told reporters Tuesday about Conner.
Conner has been the Steelers' starting running back since Week 1 due to Le'Veon Bell deciding to hold out the entire season. The 22-year-old leads Pittsburgh with 909 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns through 12 games.
He missed his first game Sunday because of an ankle injury, and the Steelers ran for just 40 yards on 2.1 yards per carry in a bad road loss to the Oakland Raiders.
Conner could do plenty of damage against a Patriots defense that surrendered 189 yards, two touchdowns and 9.0 yards per carry on the ground in a Week 14 loss to the Miami Dolphins.
The Steelers have lost three consecutive games and badly need a win against the rival Patriots to keep their playoff hopes alive.
New England Patriots
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