The NFL trade deadline is rapidly approaching as November 10 will be here before we know it. The Indianapolis Colts have a lot of decisions to make with regard to which players they want to trade and which ones they want to keep. Running back Jonathan Taylor will be the toughest choice of all and a surprise team has now entered the trade buzz conversation as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk speculated the San Francisco 49ers might have interest in Taylor.
This would be a jarring and shocking move for a number of reasons. First off, the 49ers already have a star running back in Christian McCaffrey. Sure, he may not have the burst that he did five years ago but he is still one of the best dual-threats in the game and can be an absolute nightmare for opposing defenses with his ability to both run the ball and serve as a pass-catcher.
So far this season McCaffrey has 84 rushes for 389 yards and eight touchdowns. He also has 34 receptions for 251 yards. While McCaffrey led the NFL in touches last season, San Francisco has done a much better job managing his workload this season. Rookie Kaelon Black has taken on a pretty significant role as the No. 2 back and has come in to spell McCaffrey quite a bit although Black did have a costly fumble in San Francisco’s last game against the Atlanta Falcons when McCaffrey was out for a decent chunk of the game due to a hamstring injury.
That hamstring issue is apparently still lingering even after San Francisco’s bye week which is a bit worrisome and perhaps if the 49ers are worried about how available McCaffrey will be the rest of the season then a Taylor trade might end up making more sense.
49ers acquiring Jonathan Taylor would make their offense very scary
Acquiring Taylor would give San Francisco yet another weapon to an offense that is pretty dangerous when everyone is healthy. While the team is dealing with lots of injuries right now, imagine a fully healthy offense with McCaffrey, Taylor, George Kittle, Mike Evans, and Deebo Samuel. That would be a fearsome group and having Taylor could allow the Niners to use McCaffrey as more of a slot receiver which they already do at times.
Even if a trade for Taylor feels a little far-fetched, the Colts and 49ers could potentially do business on some other players. San Francisco is still in the market for a receiver after their Jauan Jennings deal failed to materialize so maybe the Colts could send Joshua Downs or even Keenan Allen to San Francisco.
The Niners are not the likeliest destination for Taylor but with the trade deadline almost here expect some of the trade ideas out there to get even wackier.
Surprise Team Joins Jonathan Taylor Trade Buzz As Colts Decision Looms