Cardinals RB James Conner (ankle) ruled out after being carted off

Field Level Media|published: Sun 21st September, 18:38 2025

Sep 21, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner (6) is tackled by San Francisco 49ers linebacker Dee Winters (53) during the first half at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Arizona Cardinals two-time Pro Bowl running back James Conner was carted off with an ankle injury in the third quarter of Sunday's game at the San Francisco 49ers.

Conner had his right leg bent awkwardly underneath him while being tackled near the line of scrimmage on a carry. He immediately appeared to be in a great deal of pain and was loaded onto the cart with teammates all around him.

Within minutes of being carted off, Conner was ruled out for the remainder of the game with an ankle injury. He finished with 22 yards on nine carries and had three receptions for 15 yards.

Conner, 30, is in his fifth season with the Cardinals after spending the 2017-20 seasons with Pittsburgh, which selected him in the third round of the 2017 draft.

Conner had the first two 1,000-yard seasons of his NFL career in 2023 and 2024, rushing for 2,134 yards and 15 touchdowns over the last two seasons. With 6,043 career yards entering Sunday's game, he ranked 11th on the NFL's active rushing yards leaders list.

Emari Demercado (507 career rushing yards, three TDs entering Sunday) and Trey Benson (374 yards, one TD) are the other available running backs for the Cardinals for the remainder of Sunday's game.

--Field Level Media

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