The Indianapolis Colts are apparently taking trade calls on Jonathan Taylor.
The NFL trade deadline is Tuesday, Nov. 10. The Colts have two games to play before then — in Week 8 against the Jacksonville Jaguars and then in Week 9 against the Dallas Cowboys. But at some point, they’re going to have to make a final decision about Taylor.
Of course other teams want Taylor. He’s one of the best running backs in football. But is he truly, actually available?
It sounds like for the right price, he might be.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter posted on social media on Sunday morning to share a price tag comparison that gives a good indication of what the Colts could be seeking.
Jonathan Taylor Trade Cost
This is what Schefter posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday morning:
In 2022, the 49ers traded second-, third-, fourth- and fifth-round picks to the Carolina Panthers for running back Christian McCaffrey. The Colts would seek a similar compensation package from teams looking to acquire Jonathan Taylor.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 1, 2026
At the time of the McCaffrey trade, there was surprise that the Panthers didn’t get a first-round pick in return.
Clearly, Carolina felt the best offer it had at the time was those four in a row rounds worth of selections from the 49ers.
Is there a team out there willing to offer a second-rounder, a third-rounder, a fourth-rounder and a fifth-rounder to the Colts for Taylor? We may find out soon enough.
Taylor has two years remaining on his contract after this one, so the acquiring team would have him through the 2028 season. That’s quite valuable.
The Colts could desire a first-round pick for Taylor, but given Schefter’s suggestion in that post, it seems like a first-rounder may not be in the cards. If the Colts end up not trading Taylor, that could be part of the reason why.
Lessons From Panthers’ CMC Trade
The interesting thing about that McCaffrey trade is that all four picks the Panthers got turned into quality NFL players. Carolina didn’t make any of the selections, though.
Draft picks get flung around in a lot of deals, and so the 49ers’ draft picks dealt for McCaffrey eventually belonged to other teams — the trade trees are vast, but we can at least look at the players picked with those choices.
The four players selected by the picks originally belonging to the 49ers that were moved in the McCaffrey trade: Brenton Strange, Nick Herbig, Darnell Washington and Tyrone Tracy Jr.
That’s two quality tight ends, a solid edge rusher and a useful running back.
If the Colts got four draft picks for Taylor and turned them into players like that, they might feel OK about the deal in the long run.
Colts’ Jonathan Taylor Trade Cost Revealed