The demise that some were predicting for the NFL career of former Pitt running back James Conner looks to be very premature.
In the off-season, Conner signed a one-year deal, $1.75 million deal with Arizona and he’s looking now like one of the biggest bargains in the NFL.
Conner had been platooning with Chase Edmonds in the Cardinals backfield but on Sunday, Edmonds left the game early with a high-ankle sprain and Conner was called upon to be the lead back and he responded with a huge performance.
Conner finished with 21 carries for 96 yards, along with 5 receptions for 77 yards and scored 3 touchdowns, as Arizona registered an impressive 31-17 win at San Francisco. The fifth year pro now leads the NFL with 11 touchdowns and tied for the lead with 10 rushing touchdowns.
Conner, who has been healthy all season, has 115 carries for 454 yards and 10 catches for 111 yards in 9 games.
A couple of other numbers to consider for Conner- back in 2018 when he made the NFL Pro Bowl team, he recorded 13 touchdowns, so he’s just two away from that number. Also, Conner has 11 touchdowns this season, while his former team the Pittsburgh Steelers have scored 13 touchdowns on offense all season.
Pretty obvious now that Connors inj. problems and drop in production was because of that miserable offensive line he played behind.