Who Should I Start? James Conner or Deebo Samuel

Monday, January 8, 12:55 AM

In a valiant effort during the Cardinals' 21-20 loss to the Seahawks, Arizona running back James Conner stood out with an impressive performance. Finishing with 27 carries for 150 yards and a touchdown, Conner added another dimension to his game with four receptions for 54 yards. Despite Conner's heroic late touchdown, the Seahawks managed to respond, denying the Cardinals the victory. This marked Conner's first 200-total-yard game of the season, capping off a remarkable quarter of the schedule where he amassed 514 rushing yards and five touchdowns. Conner's outstanding efforts contributed to the first 1,000-yard season of his career in just 13 games. As he enters the final year of his contract, Conner remains a strong contender for the starting role pending the outcome of Arizona's offseason moves.

Wednesday, May 1, 2:04 PM

The San Francisco 49ers were engaged in trade talks involving wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel leading up to the draft, but the team elected not to trade either of their star receivers, with all signs pointing toward both being on the 2024 roster. Aiyuk is entering the final year of his rookie deal, and the assumption was that he'd be the odd man out after the team paid Samuel and other star players. Samuel still has two years left on the deal he signed before the 2022 season. San Fran has been to at least the NFC Championship game in four of the last five seasons, and losing Aiyuk or Samuel would almost certainly make the team worse in 2024. The 49ers can afford to keep both this year, but an Aiyuk extension would likely reduce his $14.124 million salary cap number for 2024. Samuel's fantasy value would have likely taken a hit with a move out of the Bay Area.