Here is every team’s leading rusher from the 2023 campaign
A Carolina Panther led the entire NFL in rushing this past season!
Oh, wait . . . our apologies . . .
A former Carolina Panther led the entire NFL in rushing this past season! So, congratulations to Christian McCaffrey, who is also just days away from playing on the game’s biggest stage.
Now, as we continue to put a bow on the year, let’s look back at each team’s leading rusher from the 2023 regular season.
Conner was the easy choice for the Cardinals’ 2023 MVP.
The Arizona Cardinals’ season is complete and now it is time to give out some offseason awards.
The first one is obvious, the team’s 2023 most valuable player.
The clear and obvious choice is running back James Conner.
Conner, who missed four games, had his first 1,000-yard season, rushing for 1,040 yards and seven touchdowns, averaging a career-high 5.0 yards per attempt.
He was the team’s best player by far. He was the heart and soul of the team and the force driving the Arizona offense. He had four games with over 100 yards. He led the NFL with 11 runs of at least 20 yards.
His 80.0 rushing yards per game were seventh-highest single-season average for a running back in franchise history.
He led the team in rushing and in total yardage. He was a team captain and was the tone-setter on offense.
Quarterbacks Joe Burrow
Kirk Cousins
Kyler Murray
Deshaun Watson
Jimmy Garoppolo
Justin Herbert
Daniel Jones
Aaron Rodgers
Running Backs Nick Chubb
J.K. Dobbins
Saquon Barkley
David Montgomery
Josh Jacobs
Austin Ekeler
James Conner
Kyren Williams
Rhamondre Stevenson
Khalil Herbert
De’Von Achane
Jonathon Taylor
Aaron Jones
Cam Akers
Wide Receivers Justin Jefferson
Diontae Johnson
Marquise Brown
DJ Chark
Robert Woods
Kadarius Toney
Cooper Kupp
Christian Kirk
Tee Higgins
JuJu Smith-Schuster
Tank Dell
Michael Thomas
Christian Watson
Mike Williams
Tight Ends Mark Andrews
T.J. Hockenson
Dallas Goedert Hunter Henry
Darren Waller
Pat Freiermuth
The Huddle Awards
Best Player
QB – Josh Allen
RB – Christian McCaffrey
WR – CeeDee Lamb
TE – Travis Kelce PK – Brandon Aubrey
DEF – Ravens
Best Rookie QB – C.J. Stroud
RB – Jahmyr Gibbs
WR – Puka Nacua
TE – Sam LaPorta
Best Free Agent
QB – C.J. Stroud: Actual QB10
RB – Kyren Williams: Actual RB6
WR – Puka Nacua: Actual WR5
TE – Trey McBride: Actual TE8
Best Fantasy Draft Pick
QB – Brock Purdy: ADP QB20 – Actual QB5
RB – Raheem Mostert: ADP RB40 – Actual RB5
WR – Mike Evans: ADP WR31 – actual WR7
TE – Sam LaPorta: ADP TE18 – Actual TE1
Worst Fantasy Draft Pick QB – Aaron Rodgers: ADP QB 12, Actual QB72
RB – Nick Chubb: ADP RB5, Actual RB88 WR – Justin Jefferson: ADP WR1, Actual WR31
TE –Â Darren Waller: ADP TE5, Actual TE24
Huddle player of the year
Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Christian McCaffrey – I had five teams make the playoffs in a large contest and the only league champion that didn’t have McCaffrey was me in one league. CeeDee Lamb delivered the goods for the last month to be sure and was also well represented in all fantasy playoffs, but McCaffrey remained healthy and was the top running back by a huge margin. He took the last game off and still outscored all other running backs by over 100 fantasy points.
Salute!
2023-2024 NFL Playoffs
Saturday
Browns vs. Texans, 3:30 PM
Dolphins vs. Chiefs, 7:00 PM
Sunday
Steelers vs. Bills, 12:00 PM
Packers vs. Cowboys, 3:30 PM
Rams vs. Lions, 7:00 PM
Monday
Eagles vs. Buccaneers, 7:00 PM
all times Central Time
Drama 101 – Somebody has to laugh, somebody has to cry
Conner rushed for 150 yards and had 204 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown in the Cardinals’ 21-20 loss to the Seahawks.
Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner had a huge game on Sunday in a losing effort. The Cardinals lost 21-20 to the Seattle Seahawks but Conner had a career game.
He rushed for a career-high 150 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries. He also caught five passes for 54 yards. He had four plays that went at least 20 yards from scrimmage.
It was his fourth 100-yard rushing game of the season, and he reached 1,000 yards for the season for the first time in his career. He did so in only 13 games.
You can catch all of his best plays in the video below.
Conner needed 110 yards to reach 1,000 on the season. He finished with 150 against the Seahawks in a 21-20 loss.
Running back James Conner has been the Arizona Cardinals’ best player all season. In the season finale, a 21-20 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, he had his finest performance and reached an important milestone.
He reached 1,000 rushing yards on the season, the first time he has done so in his seven-year career. It was the first 1,000-yard rusher the Cardinals have had since 2016.
Needing 110 rushing yards entering the game to reach 1,000 on the season, he finished with a career-high 150 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries, giving him 1,040 for the season in only 13 games, as he spent four games on injured reserve.
He also added four receptions for 54 yards, giving him 204 yards from scrimmage for the game.
It is only the 16th 1,000-yard season in Cardinals history.
In just three seasons with the team, he has 2,574 rushing yards, which ranks him 14th in team history.
Conner can reach 1,000 yards for the season with 110 yards against the Seahawks.
The Arizona Cardinals have not had a 1,000-yard rusher since David Johnson in 2016. James Conner has a chance to do it.
He enters Week 18 with 890 rushing yards. He needs 110 against the Seattle Seahawks to reach the milestone. It would be the first time in his career.
He already has passed 1,000 scrimmage yards for the third straight year, becoming only the second player in franchise history to have three consecutive seasons of 1,000 scrimmage yards. The other is Ottis Anderson in 1979-1981.
Conner had 128 yards last week against the Philadelphia Eagles. he has had three 100-yard games this season.
The Seahawks allowed 122 yards to Steelers running back Najee Harris last week.
To learn more about Arizona, we spoke with Cards Wire editor Jess Root.
The Seattle Seahawks have one more game to play on their 2023 regular season schedule. Their final opponents are the Arizona Cardinals, who were eliminated from playoff contention several weeks ago but would love to play the spoiler against a division rival. Winning won’t guarantee Seattle a place in the postseason tournament, but losing would shut them out no matter what happens between Chicago/Green Bay.
To learn more about Arizona, we spoke with Cards Wire editor Jess Root. Here are a few questions he answered about his team.
Conner was named the team MVP by the local chapter of the PFWA and Brown was recognized for assisting reporters with their jobs.
The Arizona Cardinals wrap up their 2023 regular season this weekend against the Seattle Seahawks at home. With the conclusion of the season, the local chapter of the Pro Football Writers of America have selected two players on the team to honor for their yearly awards.
The Lloyd Herberg MVP Award was given to running back James Conner and the Steve Schoenfeld Good Guy Award was given to receiver Marquise Brown.
The MVP award is named for Herberg, a former beat writer for the Arizona Republic, covering the Cardinals from 1988-1994.
Conner was the obvious choice this season. He has 890 rushing yards and six touchdowns in 12 games. He has over 1,000 yards from scrimmage for the third consecutive year. He is the first player since Ottis Anderson and second in franchise history to have three consecutive seasons of 1,000 scrimmage yards.
The Steve Schoenfeld Good Guy Award, awarded to a player for being available, insightful and professional while communicating with reporters this season.
It is named after Schoenfeld, was a Cardinals and NFL beat writer for the Republic from 1988-2000, when he was killed by a drunk driver.
He won the award for Week 13. He is nominated again for his game against the Eagles in Week 17.
Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner rushed for 128 yards and scored two touchdowns in a 35-31 win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 7, scoring the game-winning touchdown in the final minute.
That performance has earned him a Week 17 nomination for the FedEx Ground Player of the Week.
Fans get the chance to vote for the running back performance of the week for the ground player of the week and the best quarterback performance for air player of the week.
Fans can vote here for their selection until Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET.
Conner won the award in Week 13 after his 104-yard, two-touchdown game in the Cardinals’ 24-10 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Conner and the other nominees for both awards are below.
