After producing his best game of the 2023 season last Sunday, Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor was dealt bad news on Tuesday. The star rusher is set to undergo thumb surgery on Wednesday and is expected to be out for at least two weeks, according to Colts owner Jim Irsay.
Taylor missed four games earlier this season as he recovered from offseason ankle surgery. After a long trade saga with the Colts that ended with an extension with Indianapolis, Taylor made his season debut in Week 5 and was inching closer to All-Pro form before this latest injury.
Taylor rushed 15 times for 91 yards and scored twice on Sunday despite sustaining the injury. The Colts won their third consecutive game and currently hold the last playoff spot in the AFC with six weeks left in the regular season.
Over the last five games, Taylor averaged 75 rushing yards per contest and scored a total of five touchdowns. The Colts went 3-2 in those games and are 4-3 when Taylor plays this season.
What's next for the Colts?
The significance of this injury will have a lot of bearing on the direction of the Colts' season. Taylor was starting to return to the focal point of Indy's offense and without him they are back to square one in terms of an offensive gameplan.
There is a “hope” that he returns in 2-3 weeks, but there are no guarantees in the NFL. A surgery requires a different type of recovery, even if routine, and the Colts wouldn’t want to rush Taylor back but may feel compelled to if they need results later in the season.
Not all hope may be lost without JT. His backup Zack Moss was among the league leaders in rushing yards early in the season while Taylor's future with the team was in limbo. In five starts this year, Moss rushed for 466 yards and scored five total touchdowns, averaging 4.85 yards per carry.
The Colts are currently 6-5 and clinging to a playoff spot, something no one saw coming after rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson went down for the season in Week 5. If Taylor misses more than the expected three weeks, the hill becomes even tougher to climb for Indy.
Luckily for the Colts, their schedule is rather favorable and features games against teams that will directly impact their standing in the AFC. They'll play the Tennessee Titans and Cincinnati Bengals over the next two weeks in consecutive road games before closing out the season with three home games in four.
A crucial date to circle is a Week 18 matchup against the Houston Texans. The two AFC South foes have identical records at the moment but the Colts have the tiebreaker after winning the first game of the season between the sides in Week 2.
That game could end up having a win-and-in scenario attached to it and the Colts would presumably have Jonathan Taylor back to anchor the offense in the biggest game of the season. For now, they'll navigate through a tough stretch of the season without their best player.
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