Steelers

Conner named AFC Offensive Player of the Week

Hunter Homistek
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James Conner rushes against the Dolphins in Week 8. – MATT SUNDAY / DKPS

Add a little somethin' to your trophy case, James Conner.

Following his Week 8 performance against the Dolphins in the Steelers' 27-14 win at Heinz Field, Conner has been named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week:

That makes it two games in a row a Steelers player has earned "Player of the Week" honors. Devin Bush took it home on the defensive side of the ball after the Steelers' Week 6 win over the Chargers. The team had a bye in Week 7.

For Conner, the award is likely fun and nice, but it's really more about what it symbolizes. He started rough in 2019, gaining just 97 yards rushing and 70 yards receiving through the team's 0-3 start.

In a Week 4 win against the Bengals, Conner rushed just 10 times for 42 yards, but he opened up in the passing game, catching eight passes for 83 yards and a touchdown.

Against the Chargers, Conner continued his progression, putting up 41 rushing yards and a score alongside 78 yards and a touchdown through the air.

Then, Monday night against the Dolphins, Conner received his largest workload with 23 carries — and he made the most of them, rumbling for 145 yards and a touchdown:

“Unbelievable job,” Mason Rudolph said of Conner during his post-game presser. “He came out hot early, and it really kind of sparked us as an offense. Coach [Mike Tomlin] has been talking all week about securing those 10-yard runs, and we need more of them. We’re making ourselves more of a complete offense, and I think we really challenged our offensive line which had been doing great in that area all week. James did a good job. He’s playing up there at the top of the competition of running backs in this league. He’s a physical guy. He really provided us with a spark.”

The award is bittersweet right now for Conner and the Steelers. In the wake of the victory over the Dolphins, the main storyline with Conner was not his performance but this:

That's Conner going down late in the fourth quarter with a shoulder injury. He did not return to the game, and Tuesday during his weekly press conference Mike Tomlin said Conner would undergo an MRI and be evaluated from there.

“One thing is for sure: It’s [the injury is] going to limit him in the early portions of the week," Tomlin said. "James has played enough ball, and I’m starting to get comfortable with him, so maybe it doesn’t require a complete week of work in an effort for him to play, like it does for some younger players. We’ll play it by ear, check his availability on a day-to-day basis and let that be our guide in terms of his availability.”

This marks the second time Conner has won the award, as he also snagged it last season — again in Week 8, oddly enough — for his career-high 146-yards rushing performance against the Browns. That punctuated a strong October from Conner in which he was named AFC Offensive Player of the Month.

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