As they selected Trey Benson in the 3rd Round of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Arizona Cardinals likely expected they’d get more out of the former Florida State standout during his rookie season than they did. For the season, Benson carried the ball just 63 times for 291 yards and a touchdown.
Yes, the Cardinals do have a bell-cow back on the roster in James Conner, and Conner accounted for over half (236 of 463) of Arizona’s rushing attempts during the 2024 season. But with Conner entering his ninth NFL season, that is expected to change in 2025. And it’s not just the Cardinals staff that is thinking this way. Trey Benson has his sights set on turning Arizona’s rushing attack into an evenly split committee this fall.
“I’m in a mode right now,” Benson said during mandatory minicamp, per Bob McManaman of AZ Central. ““I feel like I’ll get more opportunities and help James out more. I feel like we can have two RB1’s on this team. That’s my mindset this year. Two RB1’s.”
Whether that ends up being the case will likely depend on whether Benson, who looks the part after gaining seven pounds of muscle in the offseason – joining fellow second-year teammate Marvin Harrison Jr. as members of the Cardinals who got swole this offseason – is mentally ready for the responsibility of a heavier burden versus the best competition in the world. Benson admitted that the mental aspect of making the jump from college to the NFL got to him last year.
“My mind was just racing,” Benson added. “I was (having) anxiety and panicking and stuff, but now you can see the difference between this year and last year. I’m more confident and just ready to work.”
The emergence of Benson would not only be a boost for quarterback Kyler Murray, who is entering a crucial season that he believes represents the prime of his career, but also for Conner, who turned 30 in May and is coming off a year in which he set a career high in both carries (236) and yards (1,094).
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“He’s worked unbelievably this offseason,” Conner said of his young teammate. “Showed up every single day, working out together and yeah, he wants it. He wants it bad. That’s because he knows the type of player he can be. We all know that.”
Most importantly, Trey Benson knows it.
“I can’t wait to show everybody what I’ve got.”
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