The Arizona Cardinals Pro Bowl running back James Conner is scheduled to become a free agent when the new league year begins in March.
Expectations weren’t very high for James Conner when the running back signed a one-year deal with the Arizona Cardinals during the 2021 offseason.
Prior to joining the Cardinals, Conner had spent his first four years in the NFL as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers. He had an outstanding performance during the 2018 season, but his other three years with the Steelers were mediocre at best.
Arizona was hoping Conner would just be able to come in and be a nice complementary option in the backfield with fellow running back, Chase Edmonds. Instead, Conner delivered a performance in 2021 that resulted in him earning a selection to the Pro Bowl for the second time in his career after he accumulated a total of 1,127 yards and 18 touchdowns.
James Conner reveals if he would like to return to the Arizona Cardinals for the 2022 season
Since the Cardinals only signed Conner to a one-year contract last offseason, the Pro Bowl running back will hit free agency when the new league year begins in March.
The veteran running back was recently asked by AZCardinals.com’s Dani Sureck about some of his thoughts when it comes to being a free agent for the second offseason in a row.
"“With the opportunity [the Cardinals] gave me and the relationships I’ve built there, I would love to continue out there. But I’m a free agent, so I’m excited to see what’s next.”"
Currently, Arizona is projected to be almost $1 million over the salary cap when the new 2022 league year begins. They, of course, must be under the cap when the new league year starts, so some departures will likely have to be made during the next few weeks in order to clear some much-needed cap space.
The Cardinals would probably like to re-sign Conner and it sounds like he’s open to that happening. However, it’s definitely going to depend on how much money the 26-year-old running back is looking to make.
No one would blame Conner if he went out and got the most lucrative contract possible for himself. But if that ends up being the case, then, unfortunately, his time with Arizona might have already come to a close.