Steelers running back James Conner is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2020 NFL season.
But he doesn't want to leave Pittsburgh. At all.
"It would be hard to [play somewhere else]," Conner told Adam Schefter on a recent episode of The Adam Schefter Podcast. "It would be hard to put another helmet on just because of everything and what this city means to me."
Conner, who grew up in Erie, Pa., and attended McDowell High School, also spent four years at Pitt, where he was the ACC Player of the Year in 2014 and named first-team All-ACC in both 2014 and 2016. There, he missed almost all of the 2015 season after tearing his MCL in Pitt's season opener, a 45-37 win over Youngstown State. While recovering from the knee injury, Conner was also diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. After an involved rehabilitation process, Conner was declared cancer-free before the start of the 2016 season.
All that makes it even harder for Conner to imagine stepping away from the Steelers and, in turn, from the city of Pittsburgh.
"The city, like you said, I played my college ball in," Conner said. "The city, you know, I had my life saved in, became healthy. The city I got drafted to. And then, I want to be able to say, the city I brought a championship to. So it would be hard. I’m Pittsburgh through and through. But, like I said, I’m big on my faith, so I’m always going to end up doing and being where I’m supposed to be at thanks to the Lord’s guidance and direction. So we’ll see. I’ll take it one step at a time and stay in the moment.”
As a pro, Conner's endured an up-and-down, injury-laden career. After spending his rookie 2017 season behind Le'Veon Bell, Conner emerged in 2018 as Bell held out in a contract dispute. That season, Conner put up 973 rushing yards, 12 rushing touchdowns and 497 receiving yards in 12 starts, earning a Pro Bowl nod for his performance.
Conner's 2019 wasn't as productive, though. He battled various injuries throughout the season, appearing in only 10 games and posting 715 yards from scrimmage — less than half of his 2018 output. Now, on the final year of his contract, Conner will need to bounce back in a big way if he hopes to stick around in the Steel City for 2021 and beyond.
And he's ready for that challenge.
“My expectation is to win at all costs," Conner said. "I’m so motivated for this season. I’m looking forward to it. My expectations are to control everything I can control and just put it together and have a good year. When I’m out there on the field, I’m one of the best in the game. So I know what my work ethic is. I know what my faith is. I’m just going to go out there and play football like I know how to do and like I’ve been doing.
"The staff, the whole organization believes in me. My teammates believe in me. It’s truly all I need. Family believes in me. And most importantly, I believe in me. I don’t have [any] expectations as far as what my stats are going to be. I’m not concerned with [any] of that. I honestly just want to give my quarterback and this organization and the team who took a chance on me even when I had health concerns and issues, they still took a chance on me, so I just want to get them a ring. I know what I’m capable of doing.”
Helping Conner along the way will be future Hall of Fame quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Monday, Roethlisberger made waves by posting a video to his Twitter which showed him throwing to Conner, Ryan Switzer and JuJu Smith-Schuster and getting a beard trim. That last part actually matters, as Roethlisberger said he wouldn't cut his beard until he could throw a real, NFL-caliber pass following his season-ending elbow surgery after Week 2 of the 2019 season.
Conner has seen Roethlisberger's work firsthand — and he's encouraged by it all.
“I’ve been at his place and we’ve been throwing around," Conner said. "He’s looking good, man. He got a haircut, too. So he’s looking good throwing the ball and he’s stylin’ now too. It’s been fun, man. It’s been awesome this year. I think we’ve really grown as teammates and friends, all of us, from receivers that’ve been throwin’ — JuJu and Switz — and just being around them is motivating. It’s encouraging. And Ben, he’s looking great.”
So he looks good, but is there any doubt he'll return to form in 2020? Many still have hesitations here, as Roethlisberger is 38 years old and coming off that elbow surgery. Conner, however, doesn't see any cause for concern.
In fact, he sees the opposite.
“Yeah, I don’t have [any] doubt, personally," Conner said. "I know his work ethic and I just know his mindset and what he’s capable of and what he wants to do. And what we all want to do. That’s win. Win it all and just take it one game at a time. And so he’s looking healthy. He’s fired up. He’s anxious to play. I can’t wait to get out there with him. I’m going to play my heart out for him and the rest of the team.”
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