James

Conner

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported late last night that Conner “did in fact suffer a season-ending injury,” but Gannon officially confirmed things on Monday. The veteran running back suffered a devastating ankle injury that required him to be carted from the field and will undergo surgery soon. Conner, 30, remains under contract with the Cardinals through the 2026 season and will turn 31 in March.

Things were already trending in this direction given the gruesome nature of the injury. The Cardinals still don’t know the full extent of Conner’s injury, which will require surgery, but the veteran running back is likely looking at a long road to recovery. Conner signed a two-year contract extension last offseason and is officially under contract through 2026. However, he also carries a low dead cap hit of just $2.250 million and given his age (31), and the latest injury, it’s fair to wonder if the his time with the Cardinals could be coming to an end. Conner’s season ends with a rushing line of 32-95-1. Second-year running back Trey Benson is expected to takeover the lead role in Conner’s absence and profiles as a strong RB2 going forward.

Weinfuss notes that an official prognosis hasn’t been made, but the team clearly fears the worst. Conner suffered a brutal injury in Sunday’s loss and had to be carted from the field. While he hasn’t officially been ruled out for any length of time, it sounds like the team is preparing to be without him for the rest of the season if tests confirm the worst. It’s a tough blow for Conner, 30, who has rushed for 1,000-plus yards in back-to-back seasons. If he is lost for the season, Trey Benson could be forced into a decent bell cow role while Emari Demercado gets elevated to RB2 duties.

Conner’s ankle was bent backward on a tackle in the third quarter. He immediately reached for the ankle after the play and stayed on the field for trainers to come check him out. He was forced to ride the cart into the locker room and the entire Cardinals’ bench stepped onto the turf to see him off. Trey Benson will close out Week 3 as the Cardinals’ lead back. He will likely be the starter in Week 4 against the Seahawks.

Benson continues to eat into James Conner’s workload in the Arizona backfield. Benson, who had 69 yards on eight rushes last week against the Saints, ran more routes than Conner and saw six targets, the second most among Cardinals pass catchers on the day. A far more explosive option than Conner, Benson should continue seeing a small but reliable weekly workload in a run-first Arizona offense. Benson would be something close to a top-12 option if Conner were to miss time in 2025. He needs to be rostered in all formats.

What’s clear after two weeks of regular season play is that Conners’ weekly upside will be capped by Trey Benson’s involvement in the Arizona backfield. Benson on Sunday had three carries and four receptions, and ran one more pass route than Conner. Conner saw much of the goal line work and punched in a one-yard rush for a touchdown in the first half. He underwhelmed overall against a Carolina defense that was bludgeoned on the ground by the Jaguars in Week 1. Conner should still be a decent RB2 play in Week 3 against the Niners.

It was an inefficient first week for Conner, tallying 44 yards on 16 total touches. He is still the lead back in the Cardinals offense, getting seven more touches than backup Trey Benson. Conner was stuffed on a carry near the goal line, but was later able to score on a shovel pass from Kyler Murray. Good games will come to Conner when the Cardinals are in a run-heavy game script, but his upside is a bit limited because the offense lacks the blocking up front for explosive runs and the 30-year-old has shown a decline in his burst. Volume keeps Conner in the low-end RB2 range for Week 2 against the Panthers.

Conner got the start, broke a tackle and checked out. He ceded one first-drive snap to Trey Benson, who then remained on-field with Kyler Murray for a second drive, plus two more drives with Jacoby Brissett. Conner remains the entrenched lead back in Arizona. Benson rushed nine times for 29 yards and caught 1-of-1 targets for 20 yards.

Conner’s remarks come after the Cardinals’ red-white practice, which took place on Saturday. Conner and Benson are expected to split more of the workload in 2025 after head coach Jonathan Gannon said during the offseason that the team “should have two No. 1 backs” this season. Conner also added, per Cardinals team writer Darren Urban, that Benson “is going to play a lot this season.” Conner is entering his age-30 season and is well beyond the running back age cliff. With that in mind, he’s also coming off his second-straight 1,000-yard rushing season and had a career-high 1,500 yards from scrimmage. Whether or not Benson’s opportunities will prove beneficial for fantasy purposes is hard to predict, but for a player who is going in the double-digit rounds of fantasy drafts, he could prove to be a solid sleeper that has high-end RB2 upside should Conner ever miss time.

Benson checked in at last year’s NFL Scouting Combine standing, 6'/216 before blazing a 4.39-second 40-yard-dash. Offseason weight gains at the running back position can sometimes increase sluggishness, so we sure hope Benson’s claim is true. Benson also echoed head coach Jonathan Gannon’s “two starting backs” sentiment from early March, saying his “mindset” is currently “two RB1s.” Last year’s standalone starter, James Conner, banked 283 offensive touches to Benson’s 69. Ideally, Benson would fully overtake Conner for the starting role, but operating in a split backfield would at least be an upgrade for his fantasy prospects. If the Cardinals really hold to the idea of two starting backs, it’s possible both players becomes touchdown-or-bust plays.