Cardinals RB James Conner exits with shin injury in loss to Falcons

Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner left in the second half of the team’s Week 17 tilt against the Atlanta Falcons with a shin injury.

He did not return in Arizona’s eventual 20-19 loss to Atlanta.

“We’ll have to get further information on that,” head coach Kliff Kingsbury told Cardinals sideline reporter Paul Calvisi postgame. “It didn’t seem to be too bad, but we’ll check him out and see how it goes.”

Conner was seen early on in the fourth quarter riding a stationary bike on the sideline. He was not in the game for a crucial fourth-and-two look that resulted in a turnover on downs after backup option Corey Clement was stuffed for no gain.

Before exiting, Conner had recorded 79 yards on 16 carries on the ground on top of three catches for 31 yards.

Arizona has made a concerted effort to get Conner involved in both the ground and passing games. In the last five weeks of play, Conner has recorded at least 100 yards from scrimmage outside of his 91-yard effort in Week 15.

With Conner sidelined, Clement and rookie Keaontay Ingram were the only healthy running backs left on the roster on Sunday. Clement was the only other Cardinals running back to record a carry, picking up 28 yards on six attempts.

“(Conner’s) a guy who makes it all go, so that’s tough,” Kingsbury told reporters postgame. “I thought Corey stepped in and had some nice runs, some nice plays. He’s another guy we got midway through the season. Really made a nice role for himself on special teams and then really trusting him in the pass game and to run the offense.”

Arizona dealt with its fair share of injury issues on Sunday, with wide receiver Robbie Anderson and defensive lineman Jonathan Ledbetter ruled out for the contest with a back and knee injury, respectively.

Defenders Isaiah Simmons and Zaven Collins were also shaken up early on but made their way back to the field not too long after going down.

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