Running Back 13 – James Conner ARI
James Conner finds himself on a team in a state of change from top to bottom. Changes are happening swiftly in Arizona and Conner could be caught in a rough transitional year. However, he could be the best offensive player on their team with D. Hopkins now in Tennessee. No one knows who will be the week one quarterback for Arizona, and that could be problematic for all of the offense. However Conner is less affected by this than the Cardinals’ wide receivers and tight ends.
Conner could see large volume throughout the season, and has proven he can handle it. Conner has three seasons with over 225 touches, including 2018 with 270 touches. With a clear running back (RB) 1 designation, 300+ touches are well within reach. Conner is caught in the dreaded RB dead zone with an ADP around 70-90 overall, and the 24th RB off the board. Take advantage of this opportunity to grab a high volume RB with 52 career TDs.

Linebacker 13 Josey Jewell
The former Iowa Hawkeye is poised for another great year. 2022 was a career year for Josey Jewell with 127 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumbles recovered, and 2 interceptions. He finished as linebacker (LB) 20 despite missing four games. A healthy year from Jewell should yield Pro-Bowl consideration, and he has a high floor due to his tackling volume. He benefits from having teammate and fellow Mano y Mano Top 40 LB A. Singleton playing beside him, but Jewell should wear the green-dot again and be the leader of new Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph defense. Oddly enough, V. Joseph was the Head Coach when Jewell was drafted, and Joseph should utilize Jewell”s skill set for the 2023 season.
Some are concerned that third round draft pick Drew Sanders will take snaps away from Jewell, but that is highly unlikely. It will probably be Singleton who will exit with Sanders in, unless V. Joseph utilizes a 3-3-5 defensive scheme… which with Joseph is a possibility. Jewell is currently ranked 18th on Fantasy Pros ECR, and he is drafted around here in most IDP leagues. He should outperform, and be a low-end LB 1 or high end LB 2. Draft Jewell and look for him to put the Crush back in Orange.

Thank you for reading Mano y Mano. Check in tomorrow for RB & LB #12.
Bet Smart, Be Lucky – Iggy

*Stats come from FantasyPros, Pro Football Reference, Sleeper, Statmuse, and NFL/Next Gen.
*Rankings are based on .5 PPR format and FF7s.