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Joey Pollizze takes a look at James Conner and Trey Benson's fantasy football outlook in 2024. Which fantasy football running back from the Cardinals should managers consider drafting in 2024?
It was a fairly quiet offseason for the Arizona Cardinals after they went 4-13 last season. Their biggest offseason signing was offensive tackle Jonah Williams, who agreed to a two-year, $30 million deal. Other key names they signed were Justin Jones (three years, $30 million), Sean Murphy-Bunting (three years, $25.5 million), and Bilal Nichols (three years, $21 million).
Despite not targeting many offensive players in free agency, the Cardinals surely emphasized that early during the 2024 NFL Draft. They drafted Marvin Harrison Jr. with the fourth overall pick to replace Marquise Brown -- who left in free agency -- and then selected running back Trey Benson in the third round.
With Arizona drafting Benson with the 66th overall pick, the expectation is that he is the future RB1 for the Cardinals. However, with James Conner still in town, will the rookie see many touches? Let's dive in and take a look at both running backs' fantasy football value heading into 2024.
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James Conner Fantasy Outlook
Conner continues to be a reliable running back option for the Cardinals since his arrival. In his first year in Arizona in 2021, the power back finished with 752 rush yards and 15 rush touchdowns in 15 games. He also reeled in 37 passes for 375 yards and three receiving touchdowns. Those 18 total touchdowns that season helped him finish as the RB5 in all formats, which is the best fantasy finish of his career.
Despite failing to finish that high in fantasy over the next two seasons, Conner was still an efficient RB2 for fantasy managers. He finished as the RB19 in PPR formats in 2022 and the RB18 in PPR formats in 2023. Both seasons saw the veteran play in 13 contests while averaging over 15 PPR fantasy points per game.
James Conner led all running backs in 20+ yard runs last year with 11. Imagine that.
— Andrew Cooper (@CoopAFiasco) May 7, 2024
Last season, Conner also helped many fantasy managers win a championship. Over the final five weeks of the regular season, the 29-year-old averaged 23.9 PPR fantasy points per game and scored 26.3 PPR points in the Week 17 fantasy championship. Even in his seventh NFL season, the former Pittsburgh product showed no signs of slowing down. He rushed for a career-high 1,040 yards to go with seven rush touchdowns.
Now, Conner will enter the 2024 season with his biggest competition for touches yet in Benson. However, the veteran should remain in the starting role and be a viable RB2 option in drafts this summer. He has totaled at least 750 rush yards in all three seasons in Arizona with 35 total touchdowns.
Trey Benson Fantasy Outlook
The Cardinals were one of the best landing spots for running backs in the 2024 NFL Draft. Conner is entering his age-29 season and is in the last year of his deal with the team. That means the veteran will be a free agent after the 2024 campaign, which should pave the way for Benson to be Arizona's starter in 2025.
Benson is also more than capable of landing that starting job after Conner leaves due to his size and elusiveness in the run game. That was surely on display in his last two college seasons at Florida State.
In 2022, the 6-foot-1 running back totaled 990 yards on 6.4 yards per carry with nine touchdowns. Benson was also a slight weapon in the passing game and reeled in 13 passes for 144 yards. Then, in 2023, he ran for 906 yards on 5.8 yards per carry with 14 touchdowns while catching 20 passes for 227 yards and one touchdown.
Benson showed a lot of great things at Florida State over the past two years, which is why he was the second running back selected in the draft. With Arizona also not signing any back this offense -- except for DeeJay Dallas -- look for the rookie to immediately step in as the team's backup.
.@MatthewBerryTMR sees RB Trey Benson as the Cardinals' starter in the near future. 👀 #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/0KRyCsNZOc
— Rotoworld Football (@rotoworld_fb) April 27, 2024
As a result, Benson is worth a late-round pick in redraft formats in 2024. He will back up Conner, who never seems to stay healthy and has yet to play a full season over his seven-year career. That could result in more opportunities for the rookie, especially if the team plans to manage the veteran's workload.
Arizona Cardinals Running Back Fantasy Football Outlook
It's pretty apparent that Conner will be the Cardinals' starting running back in 2024. He has done everything the team has asked of him in his three years in Arizona while totaling 2,574 rush yards and 29 rush touchdowns. Like the past couple of years, the veteran will continue to be a value pick in the middle of fantasy drafts.
Conner always seems to fall too late in drafts, given his injury history. But, the 29-year-old has finished as the RB5, RB19, and RB18 over the past three years. Now, with the new and exciting rookie in town, fantasy managers could look past the seven-year veteran. Nevertheless, he has a firm hold of the starting job in Arizona and likely won't lose it to Benson. He will once again be a touchdown monster in fantasy in 2024.
As for Benson, he's also worth a shot in fantasy drafts. Conner has missed eight combined games over the past two years and has only played at least 15 games once over his career. So, fantasy managers could expect the rookie to see some starts for the Cardinals in 2024. That should not only make him a valuable handcuff to the veteran but also a player with potential standalone value -- if Conner misses time.
The Home Run ability from Trey Benson alone is wild! 🔥 #BirdGang pic.twitter.com/lEgUyH5ja6
— The AZ sports fan! (@TheAZsportsfan1) April 29, 2024
Both Conner and Benson will have some value in 2024. The former will have the better value to start the year. However, don't be surprised if Arizona incorporates the rookie into the offensive game plan more as the season progresses. That's why both running backs are worth a shot in fantasy in 2024.
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