Cardinals' James Conner Trending in 'Right Direction' for Injury Return vs. Falcons

Kyler Murray isn't the only player who will be returning to give the Arizona Cardinals a boost this week.

Head coach Jonathan Gannon told reporters on Friday that running back James Conner is "trending in the right direction" to play against the Atlanta Falcons.

Conner was placed on injured reserve due to a knee injury on Oct. 10. It's a good sign for his recovery that he could play this week since the team just opened his 21-day practice window on Wednesday.

Gannon officially announced Murray will start on Sunday. It will be the two-time Pro Bowler's first game since Dec. 12, 2022, when he tore his ACL in the first quarter of a Monday night game against the New England Patriots.

Having Conner back on the field will do a lot to take pressure off Murray. The 28-year-old had 394 yards from scrimmage and two total touchdowns in five games before suffering a knee injury.

Conner's 5.4 yards per attempt is the second-best among all running backs with at least 60 carries. Raheem Mostert of the Miami Dolphins is the only player ahead of him at 5.6 yards per attempt on 106 carries.

The Cardinals have used a combination of Emari Demercado and Keaontay Ingram in the backfield when Conner was unavailable. Demercado sat out last week's game against the Cleveland Browns due to a toe injury.

It seems unlikely that Demercado will be ready to go this week after missing practice each of the past two days. Ingram made his first career start against the Browns but was limited to eight yards on nine carries.

Things should be a little bit easier this week for Arizona's rushing attack against the Falcons defense.

Atlanta ranks 14th in the NFL with 106.9 yards allowed per game on the ground. The Tennessee Titans and Minnesota Vikings have run for more than 140 yards against the Falcons in each of the past two weeks.

Despite their 1-8 record so far this season, the returns of Murray and Conner make the Cardinals far more interesting and potentially competitive than they have been thus far.