Colts running back Jonathan Taylor's status in question due to thumb injury
Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor suffered a thumb injury on Sunday that could impact his status moving forward, according to Ian Rapoport. He will receive further evaluation on the injury on Tuesday to determine his options. On Sunday, Taylor rushed for 91 yards and two touchdowns in the 27-20 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It was his first two-touchdown performance of the year.
Because of his initial contract holdout to start the season, the star running back has just 100 carries so far this year for 414 yards and four touchdowns. Taylor’s fellow running back Zack Moss has 141 carries this season for 672 yards and five touchdowns. Moss has also added an additional 18 catches for 138 yards and one touchdown on the ground. Taylor is up to 16 catches for 137 yards and one touchdown.
This week, the Colts face the Tennessee Titans who are also coming off of a Week 12 win. Indianapolis is 6-5 and second in the AFC South with the same record as the Houston Texans so far. Both teams are trailing the 8-3 Jacksonville Jaguars.
Colts made Taylor second-highest-paid running back
In early October, Taylor agreed to a three-year, $42 million, including $26.5 million in guaranteed money. The deal made him the NFL‘s second-highest-paid running back behind 49ers star Christian McCaffrey.
The terms of the agreement include specifics on the running back’s signing bonus. The $10.248 million sum was broken up into two payments. He received $2.562 million on October 20, 2023, and he’ll get the remaining $7.686 million on March 29, 2024.
Taylor’s salaries in 2023 and 2024 are both fully guaranteed. By 2025, he’ll make $11.98 million in base salary with $7.152 million in guaranteed money for injury at signing. His roster bonus also increases from $510,000 per game to $1.02 million total in 2025 and 2026.
After coming to the agreement, the Colts finally activated Taylor from the PUP list for the first time before the game against the Tennessee Titans in Week 5.
Last season, Taylor rushed for 861 yards and four touchdowns in 11 games. He missed six contests due to injury. His 2021 season is really what put him on the map. Taylor piled up a league-best 1,811 rushing yards and scored 18 touchdowns on the ground in his second season with the Colts.