It's not all bad news for the Pittsburgh Steelers. In the aftermath of learning that quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will be out for the rest of the season due to an elbow injury, the team received some good news as it relates to running back James Conner and the knee he injured in the fourth quarter of Pittsburgh's loss to the Seahawks in Week 2.
He told 93.7 The Fan on Monday that he's confident he will be able to play on Sunday when they travel to San Francisco to take on the 49ers. Conner also noted that there are no tears or anything significant when it comes to that knee. Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network adds that Conner is considered day to day and people who saw him at the facility on Monday said that he seemed fine.
While Conner filled Le'Veon Bell's shoes admirably last season, he's had a bit of a slow start to his 2019 campaign.
Over the course of Pittsburgh's first two games, Conner has rushed for just 54 yards on 2.6 yards per carry and a touchdown. From a fantasy perspective in PPR leagues, he has been able to somewhat salvage his outings in the receiving game, catching seven of his eight targets for 56 yards.
With Roethlisberger out for the year, Conner will likely be asked to carry a bigger load in the offense with Mason Rudolph under center. With that said, because Big Ben is out, Conner may see more stacked boxes as defenses won't respect Rudolph they same way they did Roethlisberger.
So, from a real-life football standpoint along with the fantasy ramifications, the spotlight is now on Conner to put up some more productive results.
