James Conner

After four injury-plagued seasons in Pittsburgh, Conner signed a one-year, prove-it deal with Arizona, where it was thought he might work in a committee with Chase Edmonds if he could stay healthy for the first time in a few years. Instead it was Edmonds who was the less durable of the two backs, and Conner erupted in the lead role with 394 rushing yards, 341 receiving yards and 10 total TDs over his final seven games. The big campaign earned him a three-year deal with the Cardinals and another chance at a No. 1 role. Conner did a large portion of his damage at the goal line, especially earlier in the year when he was in a committee, with all 15 of his scores on the ground coming inside the 20-yard line. It's a good thing he was able to find the end zone so often and catch 37 of 39 targets, as he averaged only 3.7 yards per carry. To be fair, a combination of short-yardage work and poor offensive line play played a role in limiting him to 3.7 YPC, with Conner's 1.6 yards before contact per carry ranking second worst in the league. He nearly stayed healthy the entire year, but ultimately missed multiple games for a fifth time in as many seasons, sitting out Weeks 16-17 with a rib injury. Conner's physical running style may always leave him injury-prone, but with Edmonds now in Miami he doesn't have a lot of competition for touches in the Arizona backfield — the other options are Darrel Williams, Eno Benjamin and sixth-round pick Keaontay Ingram. Read Past Outlooks