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Old 12-08-2022, 11:24 AM
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Default Colts RB Jonathan Taylor's numbers tell only part of story

https://www.indystar.com/story/sport...r/69705196007/

Quote:
Colts RB Jonathan Taylor's numbers tell only part of story in frustrating season
“We want to be a physical football team that sets the tone and the tempo from running the football. I’ll take 28 against just about anybody.”
Joel A. Erickson
Indianapolis Star


Taylor’s tied for eighth in the NFL with 861 rushing yards this season.
Taylor has rushed for 399 yards in his past four games.
Jonathan Taylor is in the middle of a confounding season.

The rushing numbers look solid.

Taylor’s tied for eighth in the NFL with 861 rushing yards this season, averaging a respectable 4.5 yards per carry, and there’s a good chance the numbers will rise in the final four games.

The Colts running back has rushed for 399 yards in his past four games, and the Colts finish off the season against one middling rush defense, Minnesota, and then three straight games against the Chargers, Giants and Texans — three of the worst run defenses in the NFL.

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Interim coach Jeff Saturday’s commitment to the running game makes it likely Taylor takes advantage of the finishing stretch. As long as he stays healthy, Taylor will likely finish in the 1,200-yard range, a number that will likely be firmly among the league leaders, if below the standard he set in his All-Pro 2021 campaign.

Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor (28) runs out of the tunnel Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022, before a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Taylor rushed for 84 yards on 22 carries while also scoring the first touchdown of the game.
“We want to be a physical football team that sets the tone and the tempo from running the football,” Saturday said. “I’ll take 28 against just about anybody.”

But it has also been a frustrating season for Taylor.

A sprained ankle cost him three games, the first games he’s missed in his entire career. He’s lost three fumbles, as many as he lost in his first two seasons combined, and likely was responsible for a fumble charged to Matt Ryan against Pittsburgh. On Sunday night, Taylor was at the center of two missed blitz pickups that led to sacks of Ryan. He has 27 catches, but the explosive back is averaging just 4.8 yards per reception; Taylor averaged 8.7 yards per catch in his first two seasons in the NFL.


Making matters worse, Taylor has been forced to grind out most of his yards, rather than repeatedly breaking the long touchdown runs that fueled his long-shot MVP candidacy in 2021.

“We definitely have gotten more things going in the running game (since his return),” Taylor said. “Like I’ve said all year, we’ve always been close, and that’s the very thin margin of error in the NFL. Close is not good enough.”


Taylor has hit fewer home runs because the offensive line in front of him hasn’t been anywhere near as dominant as it was last season.

For all of his faults in pass protection, Eric Fisher was an excellent run blocker at left tackle, and the combination of Matt Pryor and Bernhard Raimann hasn’t blocked at that level. Center Ryan Kelly has struggled to move defensive tackles at the point of attack. At right guard, the loss of Mark Glowinski in free agency has been felt, both in terms of consistency — Glowinski almost never missed a game — and in terms of the finisher’s mentality he brought to the position.


Because of those issues up front, Taylor has been forced to create a lot of his own yards, and since Saturday took over, the Colts have been much more likely to run the ball on first down than most teams in the NFL, making it easy for defenses to gear up for the ground game.

“Teams know that we’re a team that likes to establish the line of scrimmage,” Taylor said. “At the end of the day, they still have to stop it. It’s on us as players to be able to go out there and execute.”


Fumbles, at times, have happened because he’s trying to fight for yardage, most notably on the play he injured his ankle against Tennessee and then again in a loss to the Eagles.

“We’ve made a point of emphasis for everybody in protecting the football,” Saturday said. “(The Eagles fumble) is one of those where the offensive line is pushing, he’s getting in kind of a scrum, and one guy gets in there, latches onto the ball and rips it out. So, it’s just talking through when is enough, enough? When you go down? How do you hold onto the ball when you’re in that type of environment?”

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Matt Ryan (2) hands the ball off to Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor (28) on Monday, Nov. 28, 2022, during a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Taylor stopped short of accepting sole responsibility for the botched handoff in the red zone against Pittsburgh.

“We’ve been handing the ball off for years, I’ve been receiving handoffs for years,” Taylor said. “Especially in a situation like that, in that area of the field, we’ve got to get that executed.”

The Colts running back also indicated the missed blitz pickups against Dallas were more than just a missed assignment.


“That’s on all of us, that’s a communication thing,” Taylor said. “You go into the game with a plan; of course, they show you something different. You’ve got to adjust on the fly. … You know there’s going to be curveballs.”

Nothing has come easy for Indianapolis this season.

Not even for the team’s best player.

But as the Colts get ready for the finishing stretch, Taylor has his sights set on finishing strong.

“You’re always fighting for something, and if it’s not any type of postseason scenario, you’re fighting for your legacy,” Taylor said. “You’re fighting for pride.”

Taylor’s rushing numbers have been better down the stretch.

He has to lock into the details to finish strong.
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