Jonathan Taylor made it clear early in training camp that he wanted off of the Indianapolis Colts, but with the roster cut deadline in the rearview mirror, he has found himself stuck on the Colts. Taylor was placed on Indy's physically unable to perform list, which ensures that he will miss at least the first four games of the season. And with his relationship with the Colts on the rocks, it could end up being a much longer absence.
Taylor's decision to hold out on the Colts has had big ramifications across the NFL. Teams that want to acquire him have struck out, and other running backs across the league will be interested to see if his holdout works and he ends up getting dealt to a new team that gives him the deal he wants. But the people most impacted by Taylor's failed trade demands are the guys backing him up.
In this case, the two guys who appear set to lead the Colts running back room are Deon Jackson and Evan Hull, with Zack Moss factoring in down the line as well once he works his way back from a broken arm. People who will be interested in Jackson's and Hull's outlook at fantasy football owners, so let's see what Taylor's failed trade means for the Colts top two backup running backs.
Deon Jackson and Evan Hull's fantasy football outlook
Right now, the Colts offense is a mess. Taylor was expected to be their top source of offense as they help rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson get acclimated to the NFL. But now, Richardson is going to find a lot asked of himself in the first year of his career, which makes Indianapolis' offense very unpredictable.
Somebody has to get carries in their backfield right now, and it seems like Jackson and Hull are going to operate as a 1A-1B tandem in Taylor's absence. Both guys are risky Week 1 plays for the time being, but it also would be wise to snatch either (or both) of these guys on the waiver wire in the event they end up producing like a starting running back.
Jackson is a somewhat known commodity to fantasy football owners, as he filled in for Taylor and Moss while they both dealt with injuries last year. Jackson had some decent outings for fantasy owners (68 CAR, 236 YDS, 1 TD, 30 REC, 209 YDS, 1 TD), but he wasn't particularly efficient on a per carry basis, although that's not a super big deal if he's getting a ton of volume.
Hull is the bigger question mark of the bunch. Drafted in the fifth-round of the 2023 NFL Draft, Hull was likely looking like a practice squad candidate entering training camp. Instead, there's a decent chance he will be seeing the field quite a bit in his debut for the Colts in Week 1 against the Houston Texans.
Hull had a pair of strong seasons to close out his collegiate career at Northwestern, and while his efficiency took a step back in 2022 (221 CAR, 913 YDS, 5 TD) he emerged as a strong receiver out of the backfield (55 REC, 546 YDS, 2 TD), so in PPR leagues, it's clear that Hull has some upside. The problem is that Jackson will likely get the first crack at leading the Colts backfield.
It's a bit of a tough situation with both Jackson and Hull, because the Colts offense is just one big question mark right now. Richardson is extremely raw, but he could still light things up at quarterback if things go his way. Playing behind a patchy offensive line with Michael Pittman Jr. as his only consistent target in the passing game isn't going to help him, though.
If Richardson struggles to move the ball in the air, chances are there won't be much room for Jackson and Hull to operate on the ground. Hull could end up breaking out, but Jackson hasn't shown much potential during his limited snaps to those point, so unless one of them ends up snatching the starting gig for themselves, they'd likely be nothing more than risky FLEX plays on a weekly basis.
With drafts still happening, there's really no sense burning a pick on either Jackson or Hull. Jackson may be worth scooping up with one of your final two picks, but aside from that, you can likely scoop them up on the waiver wire shortly after. There's just too many question marks around the Colts to truly buy into any hype surrounding either of these guys.
Moving forward, there's also the possibility, however small it may be, that Taylor returns, but more realistically, Moss will be back at some point, and assuming neither of these guys destroy opposing defenses early on, he will probably claim the starting position once he's good to return. But for now, it's all about Jackson and Hull, and while it may seem like an enticing fantasy football opportunity, chances are both of these guys will struggle for production during their time filling in for Taylor.