According to CBS Sports’ Garrett Podell, Indianapolis Colts star running back Jonathan Taylor is one of its five hypothetical NFL star candidates, who could force a trade in ‘Giannis like fashion’ :
Colts RB Jonathan Taylor
Only one running back has been more productive in the 2020s than Jonathan Taylor, and that’s Derrick Henry. Taylor’s 7,598 career rushing yards and 69 career rushing touchdowns in the span of his six-season NFL career are the second-most in the league behind Henry’s totals of 9,185 yards rushing and 84
rushing touchdowns. However, that gap purely comes down to workload: Henry possesses 347 more carries than Taylor (1,858 to 1,551).
Taylor’s 90.5 career rushing yards per game average is the fifth best in NFL history behind only four Pro Football Hall of Famers: Jim Brown (104.3), Barry Sanders (99.8), Terrell Davis (97.5) and Eric Dickerson (90.8). Unfortunately for Taylor, the Colts have been wasting his prime with just one playoff appearance and zero playoff wins in his six seasons. That lone postseason visit came in his rookie year back in 2020 when the Colts narrowly lost at the Buffalo Bills in the wild card round.
A running back’s prime is finite, and Taylor remains at the top of his game after producing the third-most rushing yards (1,585) and the most rushing touchdowns (18) in the NFL in 2025. If Colts quarterback Daniel Jones (Achilles) and wide receiver Alec Pierce (ankle) can’t get healthy in a hurry, the 27-year-old three-time Pro Bowl back may start looking around for a new home. Not many general managers around the league would keep their jobs after five seasons of postseason-less football, but somehow Chris Ballard has been able to do that in Indianapolis.
Prediction on whether or not Taylor will eventually ask for a trade: Yes, by the 2026 NFL trade deadline
Taylor enters the final year of his three-year, $42 million contract in 2026, so if the Colts start off slow thanks to unreliable starts to the year by Jones and Pierce, it would be in both the franchise’s and Taylor’s best interest to part ways at the trade deadline.
Compensation to get the deal done: Third-round pick
The Carolina Panthers were able to get a 2023 second-round pick, a 2024 third-round pick, a 2023 fourth-round pick and a 2024 fifth-round pick for Christian McCaffrey in 2022, but CMC was a year younger than Taylor is today. Plus, McCaffrey had multiple years left on his contract while Taylor is set to become a free agent in 2027.
Likely landing spot: Pittsburgh Steelers
Should the Steelers get off to a hot start in Aaron Rodgers‘ swan song with his pal Mike McCarthy back as his head coach, Pittsburgh could go all in on the future Hall of Famer’s last season. Jaylen Warren is a nice change-of-pace back, and Rico Dowdle is someone McCarthy said in Dallas could stand to work on his vision as a runner. Taylor would give McCarthy the bell-cow back he’s missed since Ezekiel Elliott’s decline and Tony Pollard’s fibula injury in the 2022 postseason while coaching the Cowboys.
Now, there are a few things to clear up here.
One, the 27-year-old Taylor, who’s entering the last year of a 3-year, $42 million contract extension he signed back in October of 2023, is not presently unhappy with the Colts.
In fact, when recently asked publicly, Taylor has indicated that he’d like to retire a Colt with a new contract extension in place. So far though, the Colts have reportedly shown ‘little initiative’ when it comes to extending their key players up for new contracts after 2026, which also notably includes perennial All-Pro starting left guard Quenton Nelson along with Taylor.
Two, just because contract negotiations with Taylor got contentious between both sides back in the 2023 offseason, which resulted in the Colts star workhorse requesting a trade, it doesn’t mean that the same rocky road will be followed again regarding future extension talks.
There is transitioned ownership in place regarding Colts team owner and CEO Carlie Irsay-Gordon and her two sisters, and there could even be a new general manager in place around year-end if Indianapolis doesn’t meaningfully improve this season and snap their current playoff drought.
As it stands, Taylor projects to have at least 2-3 elite seasons of football still left in him, given how well he keeps his body in shape and his pristine conditioning habits. The Colts would be wise to work out a new multi-year deal, but like anything else, it’ll come down to cost.
