Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner (6) during the third quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium.
Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
The Arizona Cardinals already look pretty banged up heading into the regular season. Arizona could be without rookie Jeremiyah Love in Week 1 after his preseason injury. Now it seems the Cardinals could be without one of their other reliable running backs for the season opener.
Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur gave an update on the status of veteran James Conner on Thursday. LaFleur declared that Conner is still progressing well, but it is unknown if he will be ready for Arizona's season opener, per Darren Urban.
“It's starting to creep up,” LaFleur said.
Conner is still recovering after having season-ending foot surgery early in the 2025 season. Now his status for Week 1 looks incredibly shaky with the regular season just a few weeks away.
The veteran running back has only done individual work at practices throughout the summer. He has yet to participate in full team activities or 11-on-11 drills during training camp.
Meanwhile, Love suffered a high ankle sprain during Arizona's preseason opener. It quickly became clear that Love would miss the rest of the preseason to ensure he could return early during the regular season. Cardinals fan should keep their eyes peeled for updates on Love's status over the next week or so.
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If the Cardinals are without both Love and Conner, their running back depth will be almost nothing. Tyler Allgeier would be in line to start in Week 1 with veteran Bam Knight the only notable reserve player behind him.
All of this comes on the heels of Arizona releasing running back Trey Benson on August 24th. That decision could come back to bite the Cardinals if Love cannot play in the season opener.
It will be fascinating to see if Arizona's running back situation influences their decisions during final roster cuts.
Either way, next up for the Cardinals is their preseason finale against the Packers on August 28th.