James Conner is entering a contract year, and a repeat of his production from 2023 could help his free agent stock next offseason. If the veteran running back has his way, though, he will remain in Arizona for years to come. 
The 29-year-old earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2021, his debut Cardinals campaign. That landed him a three-year, $21MM deal, an investment which has proven to be worthwhile on the team’s part. Conner has served as the team’s lead back when healthy, and in 2023 he eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards for the first time in his career.
The former Steelers third-rounder averaged five yards per carry last season, a figure which also marked a personal high. That success will be countered by his age and the underwhelming valuation of running backs compared to other positions around the league. In any case, a new Cardinals pact is still on Conner’s radar.
“It would be awesome to finish my career here, but nothing changes,” he said when speaking about his 2024 approach (via Darren Urban of the team’s website). “If anything, it’s time to turn it up even more going into the last year of my deal. I’m thankful I got to see the last year of it… We’ll see what happens next year, hopefully [I] stay, but I understand it’s a business.”
Veteran backs have generally not fared well with respect to landing multi-year deals in recent years, and even a strong season for Conner could merely set him up for a move to a new team via free agency. Arizona added to the backfield this offseason by drafting Trey Benson in the third round. The Florida State product was one of the top RB options in this year’s class, and after logging 310 carries across two Seminoles campaigns he has experience serving as a clear-cut lead back.
Conner and Benson will likely share reps this season, but an impressive rookie showing by the latter could incentivize the team to move on from the former. Benson is under contract through 2027, and he will no doubt have a notable role throughout much of that time. Conner’s free agent stock could be buoyed by the speed with which teams signed running backs this March, but it will be interesting to see if his desire for another new contract is reciprocated.
I like the guy but I think his body has taken too much of a pounding to continue on as a high volume starter. There are a lot of teams he can help as a RB2 or
RB3 though so he doesn’t have to think of retirement just yet.
He’s been the most underrated RB in the NFL the last several seasons. He can run, catch and block with the best of them.
I upset a Steeler fan on here by suggesting Pittsburgh shouldn’t have let Conner walk. The Steelers were expecting Najee to be an impact guy like Derrick Henry but there’s no evidence that will ever happen.
This year has to be a prove it year. I agree with you completely. Conner was/is a hard nosed runner who has battled so much in his life. I loved the Najee selection and am one of those fans who says that too often over his first couple years here, he’d get the ball at the same time the entire D-line was getting him
But that excuse/explanation doesn’t carry much water now and doesn’t look to be a concern this year