It's not certain whether James Conner will miss any games due to an ankle injury, but it is time to start coming up with a backup plan.
Conner left the Cardinals' Week 2 win over the Raiders, and Eno Benjamin and Darrel Williams took over in his place. So now the question: Who should Conner owners look to pick up?
Our experts break down the Cardinals backfield and which back they should invest in, just in case Conner is out Week 3.
Sean Koerner: Eno Benjamin opened the season as the Cardinals No. 2 back, but if James Conner was to miss time, this is going to be a pretty even RBBC committee between him and Darrell Williams.
Based on their usage once Conner left the game, it appears Williams has the upper hand, with a routes run rate of 42% compared to Benjamin's 35%. Plus, Williams was in on all eight snaps around the goal line and converted his lone goal-line rush attempt into a 1-yard TD.
I would give the slight edge to Williams but would not invest too heavily in this backfield right now because 1) It’s going to be close to a 50/50 split, and 2) It’s unclear yet if Conner will miss any time due to his ankle injury.
Samantha Previte: Williams and Benjamin were used significantly after starting running back James Conner exited Arizona's 29-23 overtime win over the Raiders with an ankle injury.
Williams led the team in rushing with eight carries, 59 yards and a touchdown and also reeled in two of three targets for three yards, while Benjamin recorded eight carries for 31 yards and three catches on four targets for 20 yards. The two entered Monday Night Football as the RB11 and RB32 in half-PPR scoring.
Williams and Benjamin would likely form a committee should Conner miss time, though Williams would be my preferred pickup of the two.
Chris Raybon: In Week 1, Eno Benjamin played 34% of the snaps and got seven touches while Darrel Williams didn’t play an offensive snap. In Week 2, Williams played 46% of the snaps and got 10 touches while Benjamin played 43% of the snaps and got 11 touches.
Should James Conner (ankle) miss time, this backfield’s usage looks like it will take a hot-hand approach. I would give the slight edge to the younger, more dynamic Benjamin, but it’s unlikely he gets anything more than a 60-40 split in his favor.
Rookie Keaontay Ingram, who has been a healthy scratch through two weeks, could also factor in. The same is true of ace special-teamer Jonathan Ward.
