I like Jonathan Taylor. I like the talent, and I like the offense he’s in.
He’s had some injury issues in recent years, but he’s healthy now. And the contract issue that hung over him for all of the last offseason is resolved for now. He’s going to have a big year.
The Colts have Shane Steichen orchestrating their offense, and I expect that will result in Taylor getting plenty of carries around the goal line. Steichen likes to use the run in that part of the field, as evidenced by each of his last three teams scoring more touchdowns rushing than passing.
In Steichen’s two seasons working with Jalen Hurts, the Eagles scored 12 more touchdowns on runs than passes. And the Colts last year scored 19 of their 37 offensive touchdowns on runs.
In the last three years, only 10 offenses have scored more touchdowns on runs than passes, and Steichen’s fingerprints are on three of them.
| RUN-HEAVY OFFENSES (last 3 years) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | TDR | TDP | Pct |
| 2021 | Carolina | 17 | 14 | 54.8% |
| 2023 | Indianapolis | 19 | 18 | 51.4% |
| 2021 | Jacksonville | 13 | 12 | 52.0% |
| 2022 | NY Giants | 21 | 17 | 55.3% |
| 2022 | Philadelphia | 32 | 25 | 56.1% |
| 2021 | Philadelphia | 25 | 20 | 55.6% |
| 2022 | Pittsburgh | 16 | 12 | 57.1% |
| 2023 | Pittsburgh | 16 | 13 | 55.2% |
| 2023 | Tennessee | 16 | 14 | 53.3% |
| 2021 | Tennessee | 23 | 22 | 51.1% |
| 2022 | Atlanta | 17 | 17 | 50.0% |
| 2022 | Carolina | 16 | 16 | 50.0% |
| 2022 | Cleveland | 19 | 19 | 50.0% |
| 2022 | Tennessee | 16 | 16 | 50.0% |
| 2021 | New England | 24 | 24 | 50.0% |
—Ian Allan