INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor uses his uncanny blend of speed, strength and shiftiness to outrun NFL defenses.
Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty is trying to do the same.
On Sunday, two of the league's most explosive runners — one with three 1,000-yard seasons and an NFL rushing title, the other trying to create his own niche by becoming the league's best rookie
— meet in Indy.Taylor knows exactly what
he's up against.
“I thought he had a heck of a career in college, seeing Barry Sanders highlights, seeing how close he got," Taylor said of Jeanty, a former Boise State star who finished 7 yards short of Sanders' NCAA single-season record of 2,628.
“I just know the narrative of who's he's playing against kind of reminded me of, going to a small high school, they're like, ‘Well, who is he playing against?’" Taylor added. "It's like, well, what do you want him to do? He's dominating his opponent across from him.”
On paper and on tape, these two look quite similar.
Taylor played at a small high school in New Jersey, posted two 2,000-yard seasons at Wisconsin and heard the debate over whether his hefty workload and propensity to fumble would impact his draft stock. Indy (3-1) still took him in the second round in 2020 and six years later, Taylor is still one of the league's best.
He leads the NFL with 414 yards rushing this season, is tied for second with 77 carries and is tied for sixth in TD runs. Raiders coach Pete Carroll is, as usual, making run defense a priority if Las Vegas (1-3) hopes to snap a three-game losing streak.
“Our run defense has been solid. We’ve been pretty consistent, except for that (one) big play,” he said. “It's the fundamentals, it’s the line of scrimmage. It’s all those things on both sides of the football that they can elevate and really, really come around.”
Jeanty, meanwhile, started his football career in Italy before returning to the U.S. After getting overlooked by bigger schools, he landed at Boise State, led the Broncos to a College Football Playoff appearance and topped the 2,000-yard mark last year. Then came the questions about competition.
And, like the Colts, the Raiders took the plunge, selecting Jeanty with the No. 6 overall pick in April. He has rewarded Las Vegas by entering Week 5 with the most yards rushing by a rookie (282), three scores and is causing plenty of intrigue — and concern.
“Some rookies are physical off the bat, but he’s a powerful runner, very strong,” Colts coach Shane Steichen said. "He doesn’t shy away from contact, so it’s going to be a physical football game on Sunday with him running the football. We’re excited for the challenge. But yeah, he’s just a hell of a player.”
And, as Steichen would say, so is Taylor.
One thing that separates Jeanty from other backs, though, is his unconventional stance of standing straight up before the ball is snapped.
Offensive coordinator Chip Kelly worked with Jeanty on establishing a more typical stance where the running back leans forward. Jeanty tried it for the three games and rushed for a total of 144 yards. When he returned to his old stance last weekend, he rushed for 138 yards and averaged 6.6 yards a carry.
So it may be here to stay.
“I just think it’s different,” Jeanty said. “A lot of times when something’s different, it doesn’t always come off to people that it could work that way. But it works, so no need to change it.”
It's not just the running back competition that will be must-see TV on Sunday. Two of the top young tight ends will be on the same field, too.
The Raiders selected Brock Bowers two spots ahead of Indy in the 2024 draft and Bowers hasn't disappointed. He has caught at least two passes in each of his first 21 games and if he does it again Sunday, he'll break the NFL record set by Sam LaPorta in 2023-24.
The Colts got Tyler Warren in the first round of this year's draft and he leads all tight ends with 263 yards receiving. He also scored the first TD of his career last week — on a 2-yard run.
Left tackle Kolton Miller has been the Raiders’ best offensive lineman, but he went on injured reserve this week because of a high ankle sprain.
Now the Raiders are turning to Stone Forsythe, who started 14 games over the past four seasons in Seattle. He played his first three seasons under Carroll.
“The reason they brought me here is just for a role like this,” Forsythe said. “It’s my job to stay ready any time those guys go down. That’s kind of what I’ve done my whole career."
___
AP Sports Writer Mark Anderson in Las Vegas also contributed.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
