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Conner is gone -- to Steelers West

Discussion in 'Steelers Talk' started by Benny Lava, Apr 13, 2021.

  1. Da Stellars

    Da Stellars Well-Known Member

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    Connor is a good #2/#3 back, could we have signed him to that type of contract? Was he willing to be a #2/#3 back?


    He is better than what we have, but no way do I want him as our full time starter.

    It is not that he can't play at a high level, it is just he can't sustain it. He is always hurt.
     
    • Agree Agree x 3
  2. steelersrule6

    steelersrule6 Well-Known Member

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    It was time to move on, Conner is injury prone.
     
    • Agree Agree x 3
  3. Busman

    Busman

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    I agree with the present JC but he did make the PB which is quite an accomplishment. In that year he had pretty decent numbers. The injury plague is what is really killing his chance. Pretty hard to improve it you have difficulty staying on the field.
     
    • Agree Agree x 1
  4. thorn058

    thorn058 Well-Known Member

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    I find it interesting too that when people talk about no vision and no speed that for all that he had more 20+ yard runs than Bell at his prime. That's not something that just happens.
     
    • Agree Agree x 3
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    • Informative Informative x 1
  5. Rel

    Rel Well-Known Member

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    hope not
     
  6. Busman

    Busman

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    Fans tend to forget which I guess is where the cliche " what have you done for me lately" started
     
  7. Rollers

    Rollers Well-Known Member

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    Looks like we're ballin with Ballage! Oh Boy!!!!
     
  8. S.T.D

    S.T.D Well-Known Member

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    IMO. His only weakness, which is a big one, is unable 2 stay healthy.
    When our Oline was good and he was healthy , he was every bit as good as Bell. JMO.
     
    • Agree Agree x 2
    • Disagree Disagree x 1
  9. 86WardsWay

    86WardsWay Well-Known Member

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    Without an Oline and a commitment to running the ball it doesn't matter who we have in the back field. Conner fit in nicely but was far too often injured. I wish him the best. It may be a blessing in disguise for him leaving and getting another shot on a different team. If he can stay healthy then 1,000 yards and a dozen or more TD's is not out of the question.

    Good luck James. On a team full of diva's you were definitely a stand up guy.
     
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  10. mcam

    mcam Well-Known Member

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    If I'm GM, I'm going OT with round one and center with round 2.

    Okorafor and Hausenaur have no business playing significant downs imo.
     
    • Like Like x 1
    • Agree Agree x 1
  11. stangboy06

    stangboy06 Well-Known Member

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    3A843E56-7A87-4341-A045-52E345EC4386.jpeg
     
    • Dislike Dislike x 1
  12. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    Conner is a good back. If they could have gotten him for the same deal he took in Arizona, $1.25 million for one year, I think they made a mistake in letting him go. It certainly wasn't a matter of Conner pricing himself out of town. Either he wanted out, or more likely, the Steelers just didn't want him back.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  13. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

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    I’m missing something here.

    What would you have wanted them to do?
     
    • Like Like x 1
  14. 86WardsWay

    86WardsWay Well-Known Member

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    When I was in Pittsburgh a few months back I was listening to the fan radio show and a couple of commentators were saying that Conner would probably welcome a change of scene if given an opportunity elsewhere. They thought he was a decent back but his time with the Steelers pretty much ran it's course. I wish James the best. He was a very good player but the injuries piled up and the offensive scheme changed drastically in the last couple of seasons which has not been suitable for any RB. Arizona got him for a bargain and they will probably be pleasantly surprised as long as he can stay somewhat healthy on the field. In a league full of egomaniacs, he has been very humble and the Cardinals may be the team with most of those type players. He will fit in perfectly IMO.
     
  15. 86WardsWay

    86WardsWay Well-Known Member

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    You're not missing anything. The owner running him out of town is a completely fabricated story in that persons mind.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  16. JAD

    JAD Well-Known Member

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    Agree, I remember watching him when as a Pitt running back almost single handed beat then no.1 Clemson team with continuous long runs.
     
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  17. PWP

    PWP Well-Known Member

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    Conner is a good RB he just can't stay healthy..I hope he can find a way to stay on the field he seems to have true passion and Love for the game..I tend to route for these type a guys just a bit harder..Our Team's style and play calling did him no favors either, 80% of our run game was delay draw and we hardly ever used PA ..
     
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  18. santeesteel

    santeesteel

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    I thought that started with Janet Jackson?!
     
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  19. thorn058

    thorn058 Well-Known Member

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    Between Conner and Juju I thought Conner was the more likely one to stay due to the position being undervalued, injury and Covid-19 making for a statistically low numbers season and because he is from Erie and would be reluctant to leave the area. It's hard not to read this as the team just ready to move on.
     
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  20. BigBensBigBong

    BigBensBigBong Well-Known Member

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    Looks like stud RB just became #1 need ahead of O-line for first pick.

    I wish Conner well. I`m actually comfortable with this news. Now hoping/expecting RB with first pick, then OL.
     
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  21. Seven4Steel

    Seven4Steel Well-Known Member

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    Not disputing the lack of commitment. That's not the issue, however. Running the ball 200 times or 400 times with a 3.6 yard average doesn't help the offense.

    Run 36%/Pass 64% in 2020. It could have been worse. But the lack of commitment was two-fold. One was that we simply sucked at it. The other is that you have less opportunity to run out of the shotgun. I didn't dig deep enough to see how many rushes came out of the shotgun or under center, but out of Ben's 608 pass attempts, 581 came out of shotgun formation. That's a LOT.

    And one other thing about not getting enough rushing attempts...there were 4 teams who rushed less times than we did. One of them won the SB. They averaged 4.1 yards per attempt vs. our 3.6. I guess a good OL, better QB, a real HC, and half a yard more per rush can make a pretty big difference in outcome.
     
  22. Vox Ferrum

    Vox Ferrum Well-Known Member

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    Injuries aside, when given a line he did a decent job. The last two years were a combo of things, no Ben, stacked D, equals bad running game. Last year, bad line, stacked D, constantly running out of the shot gun and no real commitment to the running game. I think JC can be a decent, reliable performer in the right system, good luck to him.
     
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  23. CK 13

    CK 13 Well-Known Member

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    True. But not great. We need a great back that can take the pressure off of sandlot Ben. I feel they will grab either Etienne or Harris. Can you imagine another Harris running the rock?

    It's a shame that James was off injured. I was routing for him, a good kid.
     
  24. thorn058

    thorn058 Well-Known Member

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    Don't you think that says more about the play at quarterback though? There have been teams that have all around good players go deep in the playoffs and teams of superstars that falter. If the Steelers need a "great" running back in order to get the full effect of Ben at quarterback it becomes a scary proposition.
     
  25. Brice

    Brice Well-Known Member

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    Conner was a great backup running back; he was never brought in to take Bells place.

    Hoping they take Etienne or Harris in the first and immediately start giving him 25 touches per game. Time to force our QB to be under center and bring the play action pass back to Pittsburgh. We made Watt the 2nd highest paid FB in the league last year for some reason!
     
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