James Conner’s late lead puts the Cardinals over the 49ers

The Arizona Cardinals appeared to be following the same offensive trend they had followed for most of the regular season Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers:

Hit quickly and then ease up.

He scored his fifth straight opening touchdown of the season before scoring just three more points before halftime, which summed up the picture. And with Arizona’s running game having little impact outside of quarterback Kyler Murray’s 50-yard touchdown run, the writing already seemed to be on the wall.

Until James Conner woke up in the second half.

Conner was a driving force at the heart of the Cardinals’ comeback on Sunday, totaling 86 yards on 19 carries as Arizona defeated San Francisco 24-23 on Sunday.

It was truly a tale of two halves for the veteran running back, who finished the first with just nine yards on six carries.

The rest of the way was a completely different story as Conner managed 77 yards on 10 carries. That was enough for 7.7 yards per carry. He also converted a big two-point try in the fourth quarter.

It was a huge turnaround for an Arizona offense that seemed to be going crazy at halftime, although it did show flashes.

It was a truly complementary finish for the Cardinals, who watched Kyzir White go down with an interception late to seal the upset.

The entire defense stepped up in a big way in the second half and managed a shutout against a strong 49ers offense led by Arizona native Brock Purdy.

Arizona now faces a Week 6 matchup with the Green Bay Packers, who have a 2-3 record in five weeks. This looks a lot better than 1-4.

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