Cardinals RB James Conner A Trade Candidate?

Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort expressed optimism about Conner’s health last Friday (via Ethan Kinney of Arizona Sports), telling Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke: “James is really close to a return. He’s going to continue to work and be ready to go. There are some roster construction considerations that go into that, but James is doing great. As always, he’s been a positive influence on the team, and he’s progressing well in his rehab.”

Conner, a 10th-year veteran who has been a Cardinal since 2021, hit the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in 2023. He did it again the next year, but last season’s injury held him to 32 carries and 95 yards. While Arizona could have moved on from Conner in the offseason, the team instead kept him around for a $3MM pay cut. The 31-year-old is earning a $2.36MM base salary and occupying $4.83MM in cap space this season.

It remains to be seen if Conner will be back (though the Cardinals already burned an IR activation when they designated him for return Aug. 30) or if other teams will show interest ahead of the deadline. In the event the Cardinals trade Conner, they should be equipped to move on without him after aggressively addressing their backfield in the offseason. Not long after they gave ex-Falcon Tyler Allgeier a two-year, $12.25MM contract in free agency, the Cardinals spent the third overall pick in the draft on former Notre Dame star Jeremiyah Love.

Thanks in part to an offensive line that Pro Football Focus ranks as the third-worst unit in the league, Allgeier and Love haven’t offered high-end production this year. Allgeier has rushed for a mere 179 yards on 61 attempts (just 2.9 per carry), while an ankle injury has bothered Love and kept him out of two games. When Love has suited up, he hasn’t been the home run hitter he was in college. The 6-foot, 212-pounder has run for 245 yards on 67 carries (3.7 per attempt), and he has only managed 36 yards on 11 catches. So far, an 18-yard run in Week 1 has been his longest play from scrimmage.

With Allgeier and Love off to slow starts, the Cardinals rank 23rd in the league in rushing and 27th in yards per carry. Conner may be able to help their cause, but if he is healthy by the deadline, the rebuilding Cardinals might take what they can get for him in a trade.