Getty Head coach Frank Reich and the Indianapolis Colts have seen one of their biggest stars unable to get going early in the 2022 season.
Despite an overtime victory in Week 5, the Indianapolis Colts are not off to the hottest start in the 2022 season. There are a lot of growing concerns for the Colts, but part of the team’s issues are at running back.
Despite having the reigning NFL rushing champion in Jonathan Taylor, the Colts are 26th in rushing yards and 29th in yards per carry.
Taylor has 328 rushing yards and just 1 touchdown in four games. He’s averaging 4.0 yards per rush.
Over the last two contests, Taylor has posted 2.8 yards per carry.
But NFL writer Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report doesn’t anticipate Taylor continuing to struggle all season long. On October 12, Ballentine included Taylor on a list of players that should rebound from their slow starts to still post great numbers in 2022.
Taylor’s Previous Slow Starts
The 23-year-old running back only has one 100-yard rushing game in the first month of the season. That’s surprising, considering Taylor had 10 100-yard rushing performances in his last 14 contests coming into the season.
However, the slow start on the ground for Taylor isn’t all that different than the past two years. Last season, Taylor also only had one 100-yard rushing day in the first five weeks of the season. Furthermore, he had just two rushing touchdowns in the first five games of 2021.
Yet, Taylor finished as the NFL leader in both yards and rushing touchdowns.
During his rookie season in 2020, Taylor had a similar slow start. He had one 100-yard game in the first half of the year. Then he closed the 2020 season with 741 rushing yards while averaging 6.2 yards per carry in his final six games.
The only difference between 2022 and those previous seasons is the struggling Colts offensive line. Pro Football Focus ranked Indianapolis’ offensive line at No. 3 and No. 9 in run blocking during the 2020 and 2021 seasons, respectively. Through 5 weeks in 2022, PFF has the Colts offensive line ranked 24th in run blocking.
But Ballentine is confident Taylor will be able to overcome the poor blocking in front of him. Based on other offensive line metrics, Taylor has dealt with similar poor line play previously.
“Taylor is going to have to overcome poor blocking, but that’s something he’s done before,” Ballentine wrote. “Player Profiler ranked his run blocking as 42nd among all running backs in 2021. He’s ranked 42nd this season, too.
“It took Taylor time to overcome his blocking last season, but he’s too talented to continue to be held in check by opposing defenses.”
Taylor Expected to Return in Week 6
The first step for Taylor beginning his rebound is getting back on the field. He missed Week 5 because of an ankle injury.
It’s possible Taylor would have played in Week 5 had it been a regularly scheduled Sunday matchup, but the Colts faced the Denver Broncos on Thursday Night Football. The Athletic’s Zak Keefer reported that the Colts are “optimistic” that Taylor will return for Week 6.
The Colts running back has yet to return to practice, but on October 12, Taylor worked out with a trainer off to the side of practice.
Jonathan Taylor is not practicing, but he just made an appearance out here, put his jersey on and he’s getting work in with a trainer
Indianapolis will likely have a better idea of Taylor’s availability on October 13 or 14.
Fellow Colts running back Nyheim Hines remains in the concussion protocol, so his status is also uncertain for Week 6. If Taylor and Hines can’t play, the Colts will again turn to Deon Jackson and Phillip Lindsay as they did late against the Broncos.