Cardinals running back James Conner is coming off his first career 1,000-yard season. The young running back brings a physical element to a rushing attack that ranked fourth in the NFL in rushing yards (2,365) and second in yards per attempt (5.0). Despite only playing in 13 games, he averaged 80.0 yards and led the team with 1,205 yards from scrimmage.For Conner, he believes the 1,000-yard season is the floor, not the ceiling for the production he brings to the Cardinals offense moving forward.That’s the floor,” Conner told Cardinals ESPN beat writer Josh Weinfuss earlier this week. “I want that to be the lowest I rush for in my career going forward.
The key for him to make that the new standard will come down to health. Those 13 games are the second most he’s played in a single season, trailing the 15 games from his first year in Arizona. An MCL sprain cost the Cardinals’ starting running back four games in 2023.
Entering the 2024 season, the offense is healthy and has the chance to build on a solid foundation they put in their final eight games. Kyler Murray is healthy, which instantly adds a bigger dimension to both the running and passing game as a dual-threat quarterback. Having him and Conner in the backfield gives the Cardinals an added dimension that can use the aggressiveness of the opposing defense against them in zone reads and run-pass options (RPOs).
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