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As the reigning rushing champion, Indianapolis Colts‘ Jonathan Taylor will enter this season as the NFL’s top running back according to many experts. But on August 28, the league answered where Taylor ranks among all NFL players.
On the final episode of the NFL Network’s Top 100 Players of 2022, Taylor landed at No. 5 on the rankings.
“JT [Taylor] is a complete monster,” Colts linebacker Shaquille Leonard said on the episode. “He’s got the complete package. He’s got the speed, he’s got great feet, and he’s got the power to run you over.”
Atlanta Falcons running back Cordarrelle Patterson made the argument on the episode that Taylor should have been No. 1 on the list.
As it was, only Tom Brady, Aaron Donald, Aaron Rodgers and Cooper Kupp were ahead of Taylor on the Top 100 list.
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Taylor’s Impressive Sophomore Campaign
With how well Taylor ran last year, it’s hard to believe that he has struggled at any point in the NFL. But in the first 10 games of his rookie season in 2020, he only had 518 rushing yards and averaged 3.8 yards per carry. During that stretch, he also had 4 touchdowns.
Then Taylor spent Indianapolis’ 11th game of the season on the COVID list.
But upon his return, Taylor lit the world on fire. He averaged 6.7 yards per carry, rushing for 651 yards and 7 touchdowns in the final five games of the year.
Taylor started a bit slowly in the 2021 season as well, but he began a touchdown and 100 yards from scrimmage streak in Week 4. That continued for eight straight games.
He led the league with 1,811 rushing yards last season. That was 552 more yards than the Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb, who was second in the NFL in rushing.
Taylor was also first in the NFL in rushing touchdowns, yards from scrimmage and total touchdowns. He scored five times against the Buffalo Bills in Week 11.
This is the first time Taylor has appeared on Top 100 Players list. At No. 12, Tennessee Titans’ Derrick Henry was the second-highest ranked running back on the list for 2022.
Other Colts on NFL Network’s Top 100 List
Taylor led the way for Indianapolis players, but overall, the team had five players on the Top 100 Players list.
Linebacker Shaquille Leonard and guard Quentin Nelson were both ranked inside the Top 30. Defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and cornerback Kenny Moore II were also on the list inside the Top 85.
Nelson coming in at No. 28 might seem a little bit low, but no guard was ranked higher than the Colts mauler up front. Furthermore, San Francisco 49ers tackle Trent Williams was the only offensive linemen ahead of Nelson on the list.
Leonard also had just one player at his position — Dallas Cowboys’ Micah Parsons — ranked higher than him on the list.
Nelson and Leonard were each on the Top 100 list in 2021, but both of them improved their positioning from last year. Leonard jumped 19 spots from No. 37 in 2021 while Nelson rose five spots from No. 33 to 28.
Like Taylor, Moore made his debut on the list this season. However, Buckner fell 39 spots from No. 27 to 66 on this year’s list.
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