Here’s a trivia question guaranteed to stump the most fanatical Colts supporter you know. Since Jonathan Taylor arrived in 2020, he has carried the ball over 1,500 times for over 7,500 yards. He has a career yards-per-rush average of 4.9.
Of the 13 other running backs who have carried the ball for Indianapolis since JT’s arrival, only one has a career rushing average (with the Colts, that is) that surpasses 4.9. I’ll give you a minute.
This particular question is on my mind because of something Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard said recently. He was asked about his team’s series of late-season collapses: “We got to finish, man. We got to finish at the end of the year better."
Indianapolis Colts' Chris Ballard needs to focus on depth if he wants better results
Here’s my reaction.
If you want to finish stronger, build a deeper roster. Ballard has done a very good job of identifying many talented players. He deserves credit for finding the likes of Alec Pierce, Tanor Bortolini and Laiatu Latu.
I’d go as far as to say that when it comes to players 1-through-22, the Colts have a team that can compete for titles. The problem comes with players 23-through-53. The Colts' lack of quality depth is the single biggest reason for their late-season collapse.
Since acquiring Jonathan Taylor in the second round of the 2020 draft, Ballard has shopped the bargain basement for players who could spell him. He drafted three running backs – all coming in round five or later. He signed a series of once-promising free agents headed toward the end of their careers. None, except Zack Moss, paid off.
Taylor, despite missing sizeable chunks of two seasons, has still rushed for more than twice as many yards as all 13 of those other Colts’ backs combined. He has 69 rushing touchdowns to everyone else’s 19. Take away Moss and those numbers look far worse. Such a heavy workload is bound to take a toll. Taylor did stay healthy last season, but his performance tailed off over the final six games.
Or consider the production at defensive tackle last season. When DeForest Buckner went out after week eleven, Adetomiwa Adebawore began taking far more snaps. His Pro Football Focus (subscription required) grades between Weeks 12 and 16 ranged between a very mundane 54.0 and an atrocious 28.2. Those were all games the Colts lost on their way to utter collapse.
We all remember what happened at quarterback, where the club apparently had so little faith in rookie Riley Leonard that they had to resort to the ultimate desperation move and bring back Phillip Rivers after five seasons away from the game.
This may have been partly due to the unfortunate injury to presumptive backup Anthony Richardson, but do we really believe things would have been different had Richardson been healthy? And does it even matter? Isn’t it Ballard’s job to ensure the team has a reliable backup available at all times?
Ballard traded two first-round draft picks to acquire Sauce Gardner in the middle of the season. Sacrificing that kind of draft capital is always risky, especially on a team with a thin roster. But I want to focus for a moment on the other piece of that trade. Ballard also abandoned a recent second-round draft pick – receiver Adonai Mitchell.
Not many Colts fans were sad to see Mitchell leave. His blunder against the Rams earlier in the season virtually sealed his fate. But think of where the team stands today.
They have not yet identified a reliable replacement for the departed Michael Pittman, and now Alec Pierce is going to miss some time. The Colts are looking at a long list of late-round draft picks, UDFAs, and journeymen to step into key roles at receiver.
Meanwhile, Adonai Mitchell is a projected starter with the Jets. As troublesome as he may have been, wouldn’t you rather still have a very talented 23-year-old over … take your pick … any receiver currently on the Colts not named Pierce or Downs?
Linebackers? The Colts went into the season with Cameron McGrone and Joe Bachie competing for a starting spot. Both were gone by mid-October.
Back to the trivia question we began with. The answer is … Jake Funk, who logged two carries in the Colts opening day loss to Jacksonville in 2023. He gained ten yards on those two carries, giving him a 5.0 average, marginally ahead of Taylor’s 4.9.
He also caught his only target for a 12-yard gain in that game. Funk never touched the ball again for the Colts and was off to Miami less than two months later.
I like Jake Funk a lot. I saw him play in high school and college. But maybe when Chris Ballard complains about not finishing seasons, he should consider that his rosters need better players on the bench. Because Jake Funk probably shouldn’t be the answer to that question. Not if you want to compete in December and January.
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