How did the relationship breakdown between Jonathan Taylor and the Colts and where will he end up?

Since being drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the second round of the 2020 draft, the ex-Wisconsin Badger has set the league on fire with his incredible physicality and ability to put an offense on his back. Now, with rumors swirling of his discontent with the organization, he is looking set to leave, but how did we end up here?

Taylor’s rookie year, 2020, saw him emerge as one of the elite talents in the NFL, regardless of position. After starter, Marlon Mack tore his Achilles heel, Taylor stepped in to start. He finished the season with over 1,100 yards and 11 TDs.

The Colts were a mediocre team in 2021, finishing the season 9-8, their running back, however, was anything but mediocre. Taylor finished the season with over 1,800 yards and 18 TDs on the ground at an average of 5.5 yards per carry.

2022 saw Taylor’s numbers take a significant hit as he finished the season with just 861 yards and four TDs as he dealt with ankle injuries.

The NFL has made it evident for a while now that running backs are not a highly valued position. From fewer high draft picks, to lower contract values, it is not an area most teams are willing to invest heavily in.

Running backs are one of the most injury-prone positions in football, constantly taking heavy shots and steadily wearing down their body. There is also no correlation between having a highly-paid running back and being a successful team. Often RBs get viewed as a rental, get them cheap, run them hard, and move on.

This may seem exceptionally cold from the outside, but for football teams at the elite level, they only care about one thing, winning. With the steady move to mobile quarterback play and pass-first offenses, running backs aren’t held in the same regard as they used to be.

Taylor and his agent rightly view him as one of the best players at his position in the league and that he deserves to be paid accordingly. Taylor is still on his rookie contract earning $4,304,000 in 2023 as it stands. There are seven RBs, Joe Mixon, Aaron Jones, Alvin Kamara, Christian McCaffrey, Dalvin Cook, Derrick Henry, and Nick Chubb earning more than double that.

The Colts are owned by Jim Irsay, who, despite seeming like one of the loosest canons to ever own an NFL team, is not the sort of owner to let a star player walk if they can avoid it. Few believed he would stand his ground and refuse to buckle to Taylor’s contract requests.

Given the lack of a new contract, Taylor has made his position clear and demanded a trade. Despite a behind-closed-doors meeting between Irsay and Taylor in the former’s luxury bus, no resolution was found and it is now expected the star RB will leave Indy for good.

This should be no surprise to those who have been following the story closely with ESPN’s Stephen Holder saying, “I’m not predicting that Jonathan Taylor will be traded. But I’m also telling you that things between him and the Colts seem to be unraveling and that everything is on the table right now,” back in July

NFL insider Field Yates has reported the Colts are looking for at least a first-round pick for Taylor which is a heavy price for a running back with one year left on his contract and who struggled with ankle injuries last year. There are a few teams who could be interested, so let’s take a look at where he could end up.

The Bills are right in the midst of their Super Bowl window and lack a stud at running back. James Cook is a solid player, but adding another weapon to support Josh Allen and make his life a little easier must be a real temptation for the Bills. The Bills don’t have much financial wiggle room but teams can often make things work.

A backfield of Lamar Jackson and Jonathan Taylor is a salivating prospect for Ravens’ fans and a terrifying one for any defense set to face them in 2023. The Ravens are never shy of making a big move when needed, and this may be the final piece to the puzzle as they push for another Super Bowl win

The Vikings aren’t an especially good team but they do have Justin Jefferson which is enough to make them a frightening prospect for most defenses. They have bolstered their offensive weapons with Jordan Addison in the draft and T.J. Hockenson via trade last season, so adding an elite running back will take them over the top. I’m sure Kirk Cousins would ‘like that’...

This is a name that has been thrown around a fair bit since the trade request was made, and generally, there is no smoke without fire. This trade doesn’t seem too sensible for a team that doesn’t have a settled quarterback but with Taylor in the backfield and Eric Bienemy calling the plays, magic could happen.