With James Conner entering the final year of his five-year contract, the Arizona Cardinals selected running back Trey Benson from Florida State in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Despite a 4-13 record last season, the Cardinals boasted the league’s fourth-best rushing offense, averaging 139.1 yards per game. Conner led this effort with a career-best season, averaging 80 yards per game at 29 years old. The two-time Pro Bowler achieved his first 1,000-yard season, emerging as a standout in a struggling Cardinals offense. Conner ended the 2023-2024 season with consecutive games of over 125 rushing yards.
Conner has played at least 13 games in each of his three seasons with Arizona, consistently averaging at least 50 yards per game annually. Despite his reliable production, Conner’s future with the team is uncertain due to the Cardinals’ rebuilding phase, his age, and the addition of Trey Benson to the backfield.
Discussing his mindset heading into the final year of his contract, Conner expressed to Darren Urban his desire to stay with the Cardinals and potentially retire in Arizona.
Conner noted, “It would be awesome to finish my career here, but nothing changes. 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, so I’ll go into it with everything I got. We’ll see what happens next year, hopefully stay, but I understand it’s a business.”
The Cardinals owe Conner $8.93 million this upcoming season, and he is set to become an unrestricted free agent in 2025. Conner is one of many exciting pieces the Cardinals are eager to showcase this year, with Kyler Murray finally healthy and a new dynamic receiver in Marvin Harrison Jr., who was drafted fourth overall.
As for Trey Benson, the Cardinals’ recent addition, the 21-year-old amassed 1,895 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns on 310 carries over 26 games at Florida State. Benson was considered the top running back prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft.