{"id":134284,"date":"2025-06-16T12:10:14","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T12:10:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/134284\/"},"modified":"2025-06-16T12:10:14","modified_gmt":"2025-06-16T12:10:14","slug":"cardinals-rb-trey-bensons-bold-take-on-one-two-punch-with-james-conner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/134284\/","title":{"rendered":"Cardinals RB Trey Benson\u2019s bold take on one-two punch with James Conner"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/clutchpoints.com\/nfl\/arizona-cardinals\/cardinals-news-trey-benson-bold-take-one-two-punch-james-conner\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Cardinals RB Trey Benson\u2019s bold take on one-two punch with James Conner;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Cardinals RB Trey Benson\u2019s bold take on one-two punch with James Conner<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/clutchpoints.com\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:ClutchPoints;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">ClutchPoints<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Former third-round pick Trey Benson is proud of what he accomplished as a rookie, but knows he can do more. As he prepares for his <a href=\"https:\/\/clutchpoints.com\/nfl\/arizona-cardinals\/3-arizona-cardinals-underrated-sleepers-who-could-break-out-in-2025-nfl-season\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:second season in 2025, the;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">second season in 2025, the <\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/clutchpoints.com\/nfl\/arizona-cardinals\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Arizona Cardinals;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Arizona Cardinals<\/a> running back believes he and <a href=\"https:\/\/clutchpoints.com\/nfl\/players\/a980091e\/james-conner\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:James Conner;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">James Conner<\/a> can form one of the best backfield duos in the league.<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p>Benson was scarcely used in 2024, but believes he is in for an increased role. Still just 22, Benson thinks he can <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nfl.com\/news\/cardinals-trey-benson-aims-to-step-up-alongside-james-conner-i-feel-like-we-can-have-two-rb1s\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:form an elite one-two punch;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">form an elite one-two punch<\/a> with Conner in 2025 to give the Cardinals \u201ctwo RB1s.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI feel like I\u2019ll get more opportunities and help James out more,\u201d Benson said, via NFL.com. \u201cI feel like we can have two RB1s on this team, and that\u2019s my mindset this year, is two RB1s.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While Conner posted his second consecutive 1,000-yard season with the Cardinals in 2024, Benson took just 63 carries for 291 rushing yards and one touchdown. However, he averaged a respectable 4.6 yards per carry, the same as Conner.<\/p>\n<p>Arizona will begin the season with Conner as the starter, but the opportunity for Benson to catch up to him will be there. Conner turned 30 in May and is preparing for his eighth season in the league. While yet to show any signs of decline, running backs tend to peak around 28, followed by a steep downhill drop-off.<\/p>\n<p>James Conner, Trey Benson head Cardinals\u2019 2025 backfield<img alt=\"Joe Rondone\/The Republic \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"538\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"standard-img\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/6629425e6a0475092daefdce427d620b.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Joe Rondone\/The Republic \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/p>\n<p>After playing <a href=\"https:\/\/clutchpoints.com\/ncaa-football\/florida-state-footballs-trey-benson-announces-nfl-draft-orange-bowl-decision\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:two seasons at Florida State;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">two seasons at Florida State<\/a>, Benson called his rookie season just his third year \u201cplaying for real.\u201d He noted how difficult the adjustment was for him, but believes he is now ready to hit the ground running. Benson took a year to get his footing in college before taking off and hopes his professional career follows a similar path.<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p>Conner and Benson are the Cardinals\u2019 clear top two running backs, but the room still has several other intriguing names. The versatile Emari Demercado returns as a change-of-pace back, with former New York Jets standout Michael Carter also still on the roster. Pass-catching specialist DeeJay Dallas rounds out the five backfield options on Arizona\u2019s offseason roster. Each one of them is a returning member from 2024.<\/p>\n<p>Even if it is not Benson, the Cardinals will likely need another player to step up behind Conner in 2025. The team sees the most potential in Benson, its former Day Two draft selection.<\/p>\n<p>Related: <a href=\"https:\/\/clutchpoints.com\/nfl\/arizona-cardinals\/3-arizona-cardinals-underrated-sleepers-who-could-break-out-in-2025-nfl-season\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:3 Arizona Cardinals underrated sleepers who could break out in 2025 NFL season;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">3 Arizona Cardinals underrated sleepers who could break out in 2025 NFL season<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The post Cardinals RB Trey Benson\u2019s bold take on one-two punch with James Conner appeared first on ClutchPoints.&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":134285,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2078],"tags":[375,390,2604,1327,20311,7,757,255,6,2830,25211],"class_list":{"0":"post-134284","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arizona-cardinals","8":"tag-arizona","9":"tag-arizona-cardinals","10":"tag-arizonacardinals","11":"tag-cardinals","12":"tag-deejay-dallas","13":"tag-football","14":"tag-james-conner","15":"tag-new-york-jets","16":"tag-nfl","17":"tag-running-backs","18":"tag-trey-benson"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114692976113648262","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134284","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134284"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134284\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/134285"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}