Jonathan Taylor and the Colts will face one of their toughest challenges this week.
The Indianapolis Colts are a team nobody wants to play right now.
Sure, they rank first in forced turnovers (25) and turnover differential (+15), but the main reason teams are fearful of the Colts is Jonathan Taylor, who could cement his status as an MVP candidate with another strong showing against Tom Brady, the favorite for the award, and the Buccaneers this Sunday.
Taylor is fresh off carving up the Bills, who boasted the NFL’s top-ranked defense entering Week 11, to the tune of 185 rushing yards and five total touchdowns, so he’s more than capable of having success against elite defenses.
However, Taylor will face his toughest assignment of the year on Sunday. Not only does Tampa Bay flaunt the league’s best run defense at 78.4 yards per game, but they’re expected to welcome Vita Vea back from injury.
Bruce Arians says Vita Vea should be "good to go" for this week's game. Says Vea was very close to playing on Monday night.
— Scott Smith (@ScottSBucs) November 23, 2021
Colts RB Jonathan Taylor’s matchup vs the Buccaneers just became a lot more challenging.
Vea being back already just proves he’s a machine. In the Bucs’ Week 11 loss to Washington, the 26-year-old was carted off the field with a knee injury. Given that he was unable to walk off under his own power and was quickly ruled out for the remainder of the game, fans understandably feared the worst.
Lo and behold, the MRI results came back overwhelmingly positive, revealing a slight MCL sprain and a bone bruise. Defensive linemen have played through much worse, and Vea, who’s every bit of 6-foot-4 and 347 pounds, surely isn’t going to let this injury prevent him from slowing down the game’s hottest offensive weapon.
Even at less than 100%, Vea is a game-wrecker. There might not be a better run-stuffer in the game than the Bucs’ behemoth. He’s also adept at getting after the quarterback, as evidenced by his 21 pressures and 14 hurries.
This was already going to be a tough matchup for Taylor. Without Vea in the lineup, Tampa limited Saquon Barkley and the Giants to 66 yards on the ground. We know New York doesn’t stack up to Indy in terms of talent, but that’s a telling stat.
Here’s another one for good measure.
Jonathan Taylor has 6 games this season where he’s cleared the 100 yard rushing mark. Tampa only allowing 78.4 rushing yards per game this season. Bucs have only allowed 1 RB to get see triple digits and that was Khalil Herbert who had 100 rushing yards. Tampa/Colts gonna be fun.
— Zach Gelb (@ZachGelb) November 24, 2021
With Vea back in the fold, Taylor will have to account for the likes of Vea, Ndamukong Suh, Jason Pierre-Paul, Shaq Barrett and William Gholston, as well as Devin White and Lavonte David flying around at linebacker.
It’s one thing that Taylor proved to be unstoppable against Buffalo. If he can do the same, or something close to it, against Vea and the Bucs, folks will have no other choice but to insert him on their MVP ballots.
Get your popcorn ready, Colts fans.
Elite OL deserves some credit for Jonathan Taylor NFL rushing lead
Colts running back Jonathan Taylor leads the NFL in rushing and the Indianapolis offensive line has been a huge reason why.