For four seasons, RB James Conner left his mark with the Pittsburgh Steelers as a hometown kid, born and raised in Erie, Pa., before going on to star at the University of Pittsburgh. The All-Amercian runner managed to overcome a season-ending knee injury and his battle with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma to get drafted by the Steelers in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
Conner started 33 of 50 regular-season games played with the Steelers across four seasons, amassing 532 carries for 2,302 yards (4.3 YPC) and 22 rushing touchdowns along with 124 receptions for 963 yards and four scores. Still, Pittsburgh chose not to extend Conner after his rookie contract was up, resulting in him becoming a free agent, and he chose to sign with the Arizona Cardinals in 2021.
Conner now returns to Pittsburgh and the place he called home for the first 25 yards of his life. When asked about Conner and his return to Pittsburgh on Tuesday, head coach Mike Tomlin commended his former bell-cow running back and cited the problems he poses to opposing defenses.
“You know, we can’t allow James Connor to do what James does,” Tomlin said during his weekly press conference via video from the Steelers’ YouTube channel. “Know and love and got a lot of respect for James. He is a legitimate tough guy, a big-time competitor. Expecting nothing but his absolute best coming back into Pittsburgh because I know him. But aside from his will and intangible things, man, his skill set. When he gets into the secondary, he is tough to deal with. He is a combative runner. He has a nose for the line to gain and the goal line, he has his entire career. He has always been a touchdown scorer. ”
Conner is a thickly built runner that excels between the tackles, having the size as well as the strength and physicality to run through arm tackles. The 6-1, 233-pounder has a nose for the end zone, being one of the better goal-line and short-yardage backs in the league when healthy thanks to his physical running style. He was a battering ram in short yardage situations during his time in Pittsburgh and has become the same for the Cardinals the past three years, scoring 24 rushing touchdowns, including a career-high 15 back in 2021.
Conner plays with his heart on his sleeve, having overcome so much adversity to get where he is today. His time in Pittsburgh may have not come to a fairy-tale ending that many Steelers fans would have hoped for the former Pitt Panther, but he represented himself well and was beloved by his teammates and the fans alike during his time in the Black and Gold. His return back to Acrisure Stadium on Sunday will likely be an emotional one for him as he looks to have a strong performance against his former team while facing a defense that has really buckled down against the run the last few weeks, giving up just 25 rushing yards to the Bengals last weekend.
Sunday will be an opportunity for Conner to reconnect with former teammates and coaches alike. While he may be on the opposing sideline, it will be enjoyable to watch Conner play against his former team with the Steelers hopefully limiting his production as they attempt to get their eighth win of the season.
