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RB Jonathan Taylor, IND (2 Viewers)

dipandglide said:
Those anointing him a lock RB1 need to get in here and repent. He looks nothing like an elite back a quarter way through the season.
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You will not get any such thing from me.

There are still a couple games to go but right now Johnathan Taylor is RB 15 in PPR scoring.

I just watched the game and Taylor looks good to me.

Reich seems committed to a committee approach so far as he had the RB alternating series. However I did note that Taylor came in on several 3rd downs, even when WIlkins or Hines was having their series.

Hines does look good when the defense is surprised. He is very fast but the defense treats him differently than they do Taylor. Maybe that is part of why Reich does this. Wilkins on the other hand did not look good at all and those were wasted opportunities.

The Bears are a pretty good defense.

 
I-ROK said:
I see the Mixon haters have just switches threads after week 4 games...
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Disclaimer - I own zero shares of either. Mixon receives the lion's share of the touches every single week. 

Touches (rushes and targets). 

Mixon - 21, 20, 20, 31 = 92

Versus

Taylor - 15, 28, 14, 18 = 75

Mixon is also on the field a great deal more:

Mixon's snap count - 40 (59%), 46 (50%), 52 (72%), 

Versus

Taylor - 26 (35%, 49 (67%), 24 (40%), 33 (46%)

I avoided both in the draft for different reasons.  I believed Mixon would face more 8 man fronts with a rookie QB and did not think the volume would outweigh the game scripts.  I originally avoided Taylor bc of the timeshare, Mack and Reich's history of RBBC.  I actively pursued Taylor in trades after Mack went down (no takers).  However, the timeshare is just as bad as when Mack was playing and Taylor's production has been below average.  He hasn't broken a run over 16 yards in 4 weeks despite rarely seeing stacked boxes and having one of the best run blocking O-lines in the league.  It has not been impressive so far.  For that matter, no rookie RB's are performing very well other than CEH.  Maybe preseason matters. Maybe Allen Ivererson was wrong all along.

 
I think Jonathan Taylor is in a good place right now.  I had the opportunity to trade for him in a devy league, but the price was too high, but that doesn't mean I think any less of Taylor.  I can't think of any young RB I'd rather have long term than Jonathan Taylor.  I play in dynasty and devy leagues, so I'm not necessarily into the instant gratification that comes with redraft leagues.

 
I guess if all you’re doing is watching box scores, sure, Taylor doesn’t looks that great...

I shouldn’t be surprised. Every year people label rookies as busts way too early. Those people should be especially cautious in a no minicamp/preseason year. 

 
chad in Indy said:
Disclaimer - I own zero shares of either. Mixon receives the lion's share of the touches every single week. 

Touches (rushes and targets). 

Mixon - 21, 20, 20, 31 = 92

Versus

Taylor - 15, 28, 14, 18 = 75

Mixon is also on the field a great deal more:

Mixon's snap count - 40 (59%), 46 (50%), 52 (72%), 

Versus

Taylor - 26 (35%, 49 (67%), 24 (40%), 33 (46%)

I avoided both in the draft for different reasons.  I believed Mixon would face more 8 man fronts with a rookie QB and did not think the volume would outweigh the game scripts.  I originally avoided Taylor bc of the timeshare, Mack and Reich's history of RBBC.  I actively pursued Taylor in trades after Mack went down (no takers).  However, the timeshare is just as bad as when Mack was playing and Taylor's production has been below average.  He hasn't broken a run over 16 yards in 4 weeks despite rarely seeing stacked boxes and having one of the best run blocking O-lines in the league.  It has not been impressive so far.  For that matter, no rookie RB's are performing very well other than CEH.  Maybe preseason matters. Maybe Allen Ivererson was wrong all along.
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Based on your username I'm assuming you've watched every game? I know the O-line was supposed to be one of the best run blocking units in the league, but have they actually been playing like it? Taylor hasn't been great, but he's been better than both Wilkins and Hines, which leads me to think the line hasn't been very good at all. I'm also not sure that he's "rarely" faced stacked boxes- they've had huge leads for most of the 3 weeks he's been the starter (this week 7 of his 17 carries came in the 4th qtr. when they had a 2 score lead), and Rivers and the passing game certainly aren't scaring anyone, so I'm assuming he's receiving a decent amount of the defense's attention.

 
humpback said:
Based on your username I'm assuming you've watched every game? I know the O-line was supposed to be one of the best run blocking units in the league, but have they actually been playing like it? Taylor hasn't been great, but he's been better than both Wilkins and Hines, which leads me to think the line hasn't been very good at all. I'm also not sure that he's "rarely" faced stacked boxes- they've had huge leads for most of the 3 weeks he's been the starter (this week 7 of his 17 carries came in the 4th qtr. when they had a 2 score lead), and Rivers and the passing game certainly aren't scaring anyone, so I'm assuming he's receiving a decent amount of the defense's attention.
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The O-line thus far has underperformed expectations, but is still grading out above average compared to the rest of the league.  Local article was just written just before week 4 about Taylor's inefficiencies on outside runs and inability to break tackles.  That is what I see on TV.  Wilkins and Hines are much more efficient on outside runs.  Taylor isn't accelerating fast enough (or can't) to the outside before defenses get a proper angle on him. Before yesterday, Taylor was only seeing stacked boxes on 29% of his carries.  The inability to break longs runs is most telling to me.  It means even when Taylor does get to the second level, he is not creating missed tackles to break long runs.  As far as Taylor's carries with huge leads, its the fact that he is NOT seeing the lion's share before those leads are built.  It supports the fact this is a full blown RBBC.  What's worse, is the RBBC is with three players instead of the normal two.  It's good for real football, but bad for fantasy.

 
I’m still glad to have the guy, but all of the pundits immediately anointed him top 10 after week 2, tossed week 3 out as an outlier, and now we’re here. 
 

“He’ll get the lion’s share of the carries.”

Narrator...he hasn’t. 
 

“Their line is amazing.”

Narrator...it isn’t. 
 

“It’s just been the wrong game script.”

Narrator...crock of ####.
 

“He just needs more time because 2020/rookie.”

Narrator...here comes the rest of the movie.

If he shows up as a top 10 again in any/all of the ROS rankings, I will laugh. He was a sell high last week. Now he’s a guy who is performing about as expected for a late third early fourth redraft pick. 
 

He will still be in my lineup this coming week, but the shine has certainly come off a bit. 

 
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chad in Indy said:
The O-line thus far has underperformed expectations, but is still grading out above average compared to the rest of the league.  Local article was just written just before week 4 about Taylor's inefficiencies on outside runs and inability to break tackles.  That is what I see on TV.  Wilkins and Hines are much more efficient on outside runs.  Taylor isn't accelerating fast enough (or can't) to the outside before defenses get a proper angle on him. Before yesterday, Taylor was only seeing stacked boxes on 29% of his carries.  The inability to break longs runs is most telling to me.  It means even when Taylor does get to the second level, he is not creating missed tackles to break long runs.  As far as Taylor's carries with huge leads, its the fact that he is NOT seeing the lion's share before those leads are built.  It supports the fact this is a full blown RBBC.  What's worse, is the RBBC is with three players instead of the normal two.  It's good for real football, but bad for fantasy.
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Thanks for the insight. I would say that grading O-lines is very difficult because it's so subjective, but "above average" isn't the same as "one of the best". Again, his ypc isn't great obviously but it's higher than Hines and Wilkins, so either they are all playing poorly or the line isn't blocking great (or a combination of both).

Yes, totally agree that he is not seeing the lions share of touches early in the game, which is the most concerning aspect to me. No idea why he did in his first game as a starter but then they completely changed it up since. That's what I'm trying to figure out, but there doesn't seem to be a great explanation for it- it certainly isn't that those other guys are lighting it up. Based on the production so far I'm not convinced it's good for real football either, perhaps Taylor would be performing better if he could get into a rhythm?

 
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We all expected some version of a RBBC, but not to this extent.  The last 2 games:

Taylor 16 touches per game

Hines 11.5 touches per game

Wilkins 10 touches per game

 
Synthesizer said:
We all expected some version of a RBBC, but not to this extent.  The last 2 games:

Taylor 16 touches per game

Hines 11.5 touches per game

Wilkins 10 touches per game
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I don't have the stats in front of me, but it seems like the Colts run it on first down too much.

 
-jb- said:
I don’t think there’s any question that they WANT to be a dominant run team.  They’re just not. 
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Yes, the Colts have a good OL, but IMO Nelson is the only true smasher in the running game.  I can't say that the others are, but as a whole they protect well.  So, in the sense of one of the most well-rounded offensive lines out there, the Colts are that.

 
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JohnnyU said:
Yes, the Colts have a good OL, but IMO Nelson is the true smasher in the running game.  I can't say that the others are, but as a whole they protect well.  So, in the sense of one of the most well-rounded offensive lines out there, the Colts are that.
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To the untrained eye, they don’t look it. 

 
JohnnyU said:
I've watched his games and I don't see that at all.  I can't say I'm impressed with their play calling, but hey, they are 3-1 and should be 4-0
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Ive watched all the games too.  he looks stiff a little stiff out there.  he should still be successful behind that OL.  

 
-jb- said:
😊 Honestly. When they run I don’t see a ton of push, or decent lanes. When they pass, Rivers seems to surrounded by a quickly closing pocket. 
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Currently Rivers is the 5th least sacked QB in the league and he is a statue standing in cement.   But they are ranked 18th in run blocking.  In 2019 they ranked 7th in least sacks allowed and 12th run blocking.

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/nfl/offensive-line/2020

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/nfl/offensive-line/2019

 
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humpback said:
Thanks for the insight. I would say that grading O-lines is very difficult because it's so subjective, but "above average" isn't the same as "one of the best". Again, his ypc isn't great obviously but it's higher than Hines and Wilkins, so either they are all playing poorly or the line isn't blocking great (or a combination of both).

Yes, totally agree that he is not seeing the lions share of touches early in the game, which is the most concerning aspect to me. No idea why he did in his first game as a starter but then they completely changed it up since. That's what I'm trying to figure out, but there doesn't seem to be a great explanation for it- it certainly isn't that those other guys are lighting it up. Based on the production so far I'm not convinced it's good for real football either, perhaps Taylor would be performing better if he could get into a rhythm?
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Hines is not a good comp.  Hine's role is always going to be a COP player.   Wilkins is averaging .3 yds/carry less.  Rhythm could definitely be part of it, but that is the problem with a Frank Reich offense.  He did the same thing in Philly with a three headed approach.  I think the O-line will continue to get better as they acclimate to Rivers and River's audibles.  I still have concerns with Taylor's overall vision and ability to break tackles - Content as a Colts' fan, but pessimistic for him to ever be a lock as a RB1 in fantasy.

 
JohnnyU said:
Currently Rivers is the 5th least sacked QB in the league and he is a statue standing in cement.   But they are ranked 18th in run blocking.  In 2019 they ranked 7th in least sacks allowed and 12th run blocking.

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/nfl/offensive-line/2020

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/nfl/offensive-line/2019
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He's also had the 10th fewest attempts against pretty weak defenses for the most part, while ~1/4 of his targets have been dump offs to his RBs.

Again, it's very difficult to accurately rank O-lines but 18th in run blocking isn't good (and this was prior to this week, they've probably dropped).

 
humpback said:
He's also had the 10th fewest attempts against pretty weak defenses for the most part, while ~1/4 of his targets have been dump offs to his RBs.

Again, it's very difficult to accurately rank O-lines but 18th in run blocking isn't good (and this was prior to this week, they've probably dropped).
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Quinten Nelson and Braden Smith are excellent run blockers, but the others are more built for pass blocking.  I see that as balance.  Perhaps they should add another run blocker in next year's draft.  We all know what Nelson is, he's a pancake waiting to happen, but in 2019 Braden Smith ranked fifth in run blocking (86.4). Among all offensive tackles, he was seventh in overall grade (79.8).  Both Smith and Nelson are under age 25.

Throw in 1st rd pick Ryan Kelly (27), the Colts have the foundation for a very good OL for years to come.  I do however believe Anthony Castonzo is overrated and aging.  I would like to see them replace Castonzo.

 
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chad in Indy said:
Hines is not a good comp.  Hine's role is always going to be a COP player.   Wilkins is averaging .3 yds/carry less.  Rhythm could definitely be part of it, but that is the problem with a Frank Reich offense.  He did the same thing in Philly with a three headed approach.  I think the O-line will continue to get better as they acclimate to Rivers and River's audibles.  I still have concerns with Taylor's overall vision and ability to break tackles - Content as a Colts' fan, but pessimistic for him to ever be a lock as a RB1 in fantasy.
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He's playing for the same team running behind the same O-line against the same defenses isn't he? Don't think you can just ignore him as a comp, if anything his ypc should be a little higher due to the fact that they have to account for his receiving ability (targeting Taylor more would likely open up some running lanes for him as well).

The committee thing is definitely a concern, that was my first post yesterday, but this discussion is more about his actual performance when he does get the ball. The bottom line is no one is putting up good numbers running behind this line so far but Taylor has been the best of the bunch. Either they all have stunk, the O-line hasn't been very good, or both- just trying to get a gauge on how much is him vs. other factors.

 
JohnnyU said:
Quinten Nelson and Braden Smith are excellent run blockers, but the others are more built for pass blocking.  I see that as balance.  Perhaps they should add another run blocker in next year's draft.  We all know what Nelson is, he's a pancake waiting to happen, but in 2019 Braden Smith ranked fifth in run blocking (86.4). Among all offensive tackles, he was seventh in overall grade (79.8).  Both Smith and Nelson are under age 25.

Throw in 1st rd pick Ryan Kelly (27), the Colts have the foundation for a very good OL for years to come.  I do however believe Anthony Castonzo is overrated and aging.  I would like to see them replace Castonzo.
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Thanks I guess, but I'm just talking about the last 3 games. Have they been blocking great and Taylor just isn't taking advantage, or has there not been much there for him, that kind of thing. Seems like he's only been mediocre but he's also only had mediocre blocking (same for the other RBs I suppose).

 
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I-ROK said:
At this rate all he has to do is stay healthy and he will finish as a top 12 rb
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True but Sunday was very worrisome. I was feeling good about my Taylor and Henderson combo too, now I don’t know what to make of it.

 
I traded Kyler for Taylor+ in a SF after Mack got hurt so needless to say I was a believer.

I am just not loving what I see though.  Forget the committee, I'm just not impressed when he has the ball in his hands.  People have mentioned the vision as fixable for a rookie who had no preseason and I agree it's possible, but it seems equally as likely that he's just one on a long list of guys who has poor vision and that went unnoticed in college when running behind a dominant O-line.  For a lot of guys vision/instincts are just something they will never get.  For some they just need some time to get up to NFL speed.  It's 50/50 really.

I've been more concerned that he just seems kind of plain with the ball in his hands.  He doesn't really break tackles despite his size, and he's certainly not making his living off of juking people.  So what does he offer then?  He's big and he's fast, but that isn't really translating to much without the ability to shed some weak tackles or make some guys miss.  Not to mention find the right holes and take the subtle angles to get beyond the second level that some great vision/instincts would provide.

I dunno, if I had it to do over again I definitely still wouldn't make that trade, and I'm pretty worried.  He could definitely turn things around but I was certainly hoping more for a quick pop given the position, situation, and talent.

 
Biabreakable said:
You will not get any such thing from me.

There are still a couple games to go but right now Johnathan Taylor is RB 15 in PPR scoring.

I just watched the game and Taylor looks good to me.

Reich seems committed to a committee approach so far as he had the RB alternating series. However I did note that Taylor came in on several 3rd downs, even when WIlkins or Hines was having their series.

Hines does look good when the defense is surprised. He is very fast but the defense treats him differently than they do Taylor. Maybe that is part of why Reich does this. Wilkins on the other hand did not look good at all and those were wasted opportunities.

The Bears are a pretty good defense.
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RB15 in scoring when most of the elite backs are hurt does nothing for me. It's way too early. My POINT is those penciling him in as some elite RB need to slow their roll. 

 
JohnnyU said:
I think Jonathan Taylor is in a good place right now.  I had the opportunity to trade for him in a devy league, but the price was too high, but that doesn't mean I think any less of Taylor.  I can't think of any young RB I'd rather have long term than Jonathan Taylor.  I play in dynasty and devy leagues, so I'm not necessarily into the instant gratification that comes with redraft leagues.
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I'm coming from a mostly dynasty perspective. No owner is going to sell low this early. I do recall CMC starting slow and him being a good buy after his first season. Those high on JT might get that chance if doesn't show out and this stays a clustered commitee.

I personally drafted CEH when I had the choice between the two. It was close. But I ended up going with CEH due to draft capital, situation, and the likliehood of his PPR floor/ceiling being higher than JT's. I give the edge to CEH as of now. We need a few more years before we know who the better fantasy back is. 

 
i thought CEH and JT would have huge potential to bust in the NFL. I liked Dobbins and Swift best, their situation worst.

JT'll be fine. If he seems stiff, that's how he ran in college. When he gets in the open field is when he's a menace. Once he begins to hit that second level, forget it. Those times will come. It's about having patience with a rookie.  I think. Or maybe I should trust my first thought. That he had potential to bust a bit. I like what I see of him in the pros. He actually seems to see his blocks better than I thought. Lots of highlights in college, he's running up the back of his OL and then bouncing. In the pros, he's still hesitating at the hole, but not as badly.

I dunno. :shrug:

Looked like he might break a few yesterday but for one angle or one move.

 
humpback said:
He's playing for the same team running behind the same O-line against the same defenses isn't he? Don't think you can just ignore him as a comp, if anything his ypc should be a little higher due to the fact that they have to account for his receiving ability (targeting Taylor more would likely open up some running lanes for him as well).

The committee thing is definitely a concern, that was my first post yesterday, but this discussion is more about his actual performance when he does get the ball. The bottom line is no one is putting up good numbers running behind this line so far but Taylor has been the best of the bunch. Either they all have stunk, the O-line hasn't been very good, or both- just trying to get a gauge on how much is him vs. other factors.
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To your question, Reich, Rivers, and even Taylor have all three openly had press comments that Taylor has made the wrong reads/hit the wrong holes on several occasions throughout the games. 

 
dipandglide said:
RB15 in scoring when most of the elite backs are hurt does nothing for me. It's way too early. My POINT is those penciling him in as some elite RB need to slow their roll. 
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They arent using him enough yet. I think that changes soon. I don't see the benefit of giving Wilkins so many opportunities. I am going to assume that Reich does not persist in this futility. Its not very smart.

I saw a funny thing where Rivers is talking shmack to the LBers about Taylor getting the edge on them.

 
Waldman's Top 10 article has a good breakdown of Taylor. If you trust Waldman Taylor is a hold. Stay patient.

 
I-ROK said:
I guess if all you’re doing is watching box scores, sure, Taylor doesn’t looks that great...

I shouldn’t be surprised. Every year people label rookies as busts way too early. Those people should be especially cautious in a no minicamp/preseason year. 
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Seriously....it’s 4 games into his career and he’s a top 15 back...the shark move is to trade for him which I just did.  Once he blows up it’s too late

 
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Banger said:
Seriously....it’s 4 games into his career and he’s a top 15 back
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Yep

Its funny because in the CEH thread the narrative is “I’ll take that production any day” but the hate is strong in here. I don’t get it

 
Banger said:
Seriously....it’s 4 games into his career and he’s a top 15 back...the shark move is to trade for him which I just did.  Once he blows up it’s too late
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Well I think that’s the rub. He’s listed in most places as a top 8-10 back, and has performed as a top 16 back.  He’s not active in the passing game and is sharing carries with two others. I guess it’s just perception of hearing that he will be the workhorse (he isn’t), receiving back (he hasn’t been) behind one of the best offensive lines in the league (they’re not). He’s currently a good RB2 with RB1 upside in a given week and he’s being touted as an RB1 going forward. Just my take. 
 

curious what you gave up for him as I have had zero offers. 

 
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I-ROK said:
Yep

Its funny because in the CEH thread the narrative is “I’ll take that production any day” but the hate is strong in here. I don’t get it
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Difference is one guy is getting 90% of the RB carries and 75% of the RB targets in his most recent game while avg 4.3ypc for the season against a much tougher schedule. The other got 50% of the carries and 20% of the targets and has been avg 3.8ypc against mostly bottom tier rush defenses. There’s a pretty clear delineation in efficiency and effectiveness thru a small sample size so far. Whether that continues to hold true remains to be seen.

 
Buckna said:
Difference is one guy is getting 90% of the RB carries and 75% of the RB targets in his most recent game while avg 4.3ypc for the season against a much tougher schedule. The other got 50% of the carries and 20% of the targets and has been avg 3.8ypc against mostly bottom tier rush defenses. There’s a pretty clear delineation in efficiency and effectiveness thru a small sample size so far. Whether that continues to hold true remains to be seen.
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Sure. In spite of all of that one is averaging only 1.8 more than the other. The sky certainly isn’t falling for either

its interesting that you take week 4 for one and weeks 1-4 for the other to try and paint an apples to apples picture, but that’s not how it works  :lol:  . If Taylor was doing considerably better than CEH the narrative would be “sample size.” 
Your post is exactly what I mean when I said it’s funny looking at the two narratives. It’s the same as me saying Taylor has twice as many TDs as CEH so Taylor’s outlook is more rosey. 1.8 fp/g isn’t a huge difference, but the narrative is so different between the two

 
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-jb- said:
Well I think that’s the rub. He’s listed in most places as a top 8-10 back, and has performed as a top 16 back.  He’s not active in the passing game and is sharing carries with two others. I guess it’s just perception of hearing that he will be the workhorse (he isn’t), receiving back (he hasn’t been) behind one of the best offensive lines in the league (they’re not). He’s currently a good RB2 with RB1 upside in a given week and he’s being touted as an RB1 going forward. Just my take. 
 

curious what you gave up for him as I have had zero offers. 
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Lamb and Gurley in a dynasty league...very deep at WR and RB and wanted to upgrade

 
I owned Ladanian Tomlinson back in the day in his rookie year and I remember the same arguments with his 3.6 ypc.  The thread was dozens of pages long.  You go with good talent, hope they can avoid injuries and hope for the best. 

 
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Banger said:
I owned Ladanian Tomlinson back in the day in his rookie year and I remember the same arguments with his 3.6 ypc.  The thread was dozens of pages long.  You go with good talent, hope they can avoid injuries and hope for the best. 
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In fairness, LaDainian had 339 rushes and 59 catches that year. Taylor won’t sniff that (on pace for 260 and 40)  Talent is important, but so is opportunity. 

 
Good write-up.  Video of whole session as well as additional offensive commentary here.

» OC Sirianni isn't concerned about the team's average yards-per-carry figure, which currently ranks last in the NFL: Coming off a season in 2019 in which the Colts ranked seventh in the league in rushing, and 10th in yards per carry, the Indy offense has high hopes for its run game entering the 2020 season. Not only were all five starting offensive linemen returning, as well as starting running back Marlon Mack, top third-down back Nyheim Hines and a key piece of depth in Jordan Wilkins, but the team also used a second-round pick to select Wisconsin's Jonathan Taylor, the most explosive running back in his class, in this year's NFL Draft.

Through the first four games of the year, while the Colts certainly haven't been slackers in terms of their total rushing yards — they rank tied for 15th in the NFL with 115.3 rushing yards per game — they haven't gotten the production they would've liked from a yards-per-carry standpoint, as the team currently ranks dead last in the NFL in that category (3.52).

Lots goes into that figure, of course, and it's still very early in the season. Sirianni said he's not worried about it at this point, and figures that number will creep back up eventually.

"We're doing the things that we need to do to win football games," Sirianni said of the Colts, who are 3-1 and have won three straight heading into this Sunday's road game against the Cleveland Browns. "You mentioned the kneel downs and stuff like that, it's also four-minute runs at times. Those aren't going to – you're going against a very heavy box. The box is stacked against you. They have one more guy than you can block, and we've been in four-minute mode the last three weeks. So, I think that definitely plays into it as well.

"I think we're in a good position," Sirianni continued. "I'm not concerned about it. I know some of these runs will start to break out of there and get some explosive runs, more so than what we've been getting."

» Sticking with the run game, Sirianni said the Colts have been mindful of keeping the backs fresh throughout the ballgame: Mack entered the season as the workhorse at the running back position, and for good reason, as he was coming of his first-career 1,000-yard rushing performance. But he went down with a season-ending Achilles injury Week 1 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, causing a little bit of a shuffle in terms of how the team wanted to utilize the running back position moving forward.

Taylor has stepped into the starting role the last three weeks, and he's done quite well for himself, averaging 76 yards in his three starts and scoring two touchdowns. But Taylor also isn't being utilized quite as much overall; he was in on 67 percent of the snaps for his first start against the Minnesota Vikings, but saw that number drop to 41 percent the following week against the New York Jets and was at 46 percent last Sunday in the Colts' 19-11 win over the Chicago Bears.

It's not that Taylor doesn't have the ability to take on more of a workload, Sirianni said, but the coaches also are trying to be mindful of keeping a fresh back out on the field at all times. Then, especially late, Taylor is more apt to excel against a tired defense not exactly looking forward to bringing him to the ground play after play.

"I have a ton of confidence in Jonathan, and he could carry the ball 25 times a game," Sirianni said. "We just have a lot of confidence in the other guys as well and they do things really well also and we want to let them shine as well and keep everybody fresh.

"Those defensive guys aren't getting a break," Sirianni continued. "They are still having to tackle Jordan and Nyheim. Then Jonathan comes back in in the fourth quarter with that big four-minute drive and it gets harder and harder to tackle him."

Hines has been in on 33.5 percent of the Colts' offensive plays to this point of the season, while Wilkins has seen action on 16.6 percent of the offensive snaps.
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