Perhaps no Arizona Cardinals player knew and felt how important Monday night's game against the Los Angeles Chargers was for the team more than veteran running back James Conner. That was perfectly underscored by his sincere message to the Cards on Sunday night, as his squad was getting ready for the showdown against LA.

“Just telling them push all their chips in for this week, that we still on a mission, to tell the guys don't take nothing for granted, and just play good football,” Conner said, per Josh Weinfuss of ESPN. “Push all your chips in to this week, give it all you got.”

“We got some guys on the team who out for the season, who wish they could be out there and just play hard,” Connor continued. “So, yeah, just told them to play hard and push all their chips and just get a victory for this week.”

Conner was not just all talk. He showed out on the field against the Chargers, as he rushed for 101 yards on 19 carries. Moreover, the 29-year-old Conner led the Cardinals with 51 receiving yards on two catches and four targets to help Arizona pull off a 17-15 victory at State Farm Stadium. While he was not able to find the end zone, Conner, who will be a free agent in 2025, became the first player in the 2024 campaign to rack up at least 100 yards from scrimmage against the Chargers.

After seven games this season, Conner has 504 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 109 carries.

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Cardinals eke out crucial win in Week 7 against the Chargers

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The Cardinals entered the Chargers game with just a 2-4 record. With their win over Los Angeles, the Cards improved to 3-4 and stayed close behind NFC West division leaders Seattle Seahawks, who have a 4-3 record through seven weeks of football in the 2024 NFL regular season.

Despite the big win over the Bolts, the Cardinals still have plenty of work left to do to polish their game. They have a negative point-differential of minus-28 to date and are just 19th and 24th in the league with averages of 21.4 points and 25.4 points allowed per game, respectively.