Arizona Cardinals’ James Conner Curiously Dinged Ahead of 2025

The Arizona Cardinals will once again look to ride the wheels of running back James Conner entering the 2025 season, a recipe that's seen success under offensive coordinator Drew Petzing.

Conner, who has reached back-to-back 1,000 yard campaigns with Arizona, inked a contract extension to remain with the Cardinals heading into the future.

Though his placement as RB1 in the desert can't be questioned, there's concern surrounding his overall ability to be productive - and Bleacher Report believes Conner will be a "bust" this season as a result of players around him elevating their game.

Bleacher Report Labels Arizona Cardinals RB James Conner as Bust Candidate

"The fantasy crowd may want to be wary of running back James Conner in 2025. Though the Arizona Cardinals' starter is coming off his second straight season with 1,000 rushing yards and nine total touchdowns, the 30-year-old may be in line for a regression," wrote Kristopher Knox.

"Second-year running back Trey Benson should step into a more prominent role this season, and Emari Demercado is still around as Arizona's change-of-pace option. With wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. also likely to take a second-year jump, the Cardinals may also be less run-oriented than they were over the past two seasons."

Conner, who has struggled with health in the past, played his first-ever 16 game season in 2024 with a career-high in rushing yards at 1,094.

While Arizona may favor the pass more in 2025 - it won't be substantial enough to ding Conner. Petzing won't drastically change his philosophy over the course of one offseason, and Conner is still very much the lead running back in Arizona.

However, you could build arguments for his usage to shrink with Benson behind him, who has impressed the Cardinals' coaching staff entering his second season.

“I feel like I’ll get more opportunities and help James out more,” Benson told reporters this offseason. “I feel like we can have two RB1’s on this team, and that’s my mindset this year is two RB1’s.”

Conner also turned 30 - a dreaded age for running backs in the league that's shown historical dropoffs in production after hitting the three-decade milestone.

McBride will surely get his fair share of touches and Harrison is bound to see a sophomore surge - though so long as Conner is healthy, he'll have every opportunity to prove himself as the workhorse in Arizona's offense.

While it's possible Conner won't see heavy carries in 2025 due to a few factors outside of his control, it's hard to imagine he's a flat-out bust.

Conner was recently voted as a top ten running back in the league by NFL execs, which you can read more about here.