Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay says the team isn’t trading Jonathan Taylor, despite his trade requests and demand for a new contract. However, if Indy changes course and does explore a trade for Taylor, the Kansas City Chiefs have been named as a team to watch. Yep, that’s right. The defending Super Bowl Champs, that already have more than enough talent, will reportedly be interested in adding Taylor.
Matt Lombardo, a senior NFL insider for FanBuzz, reported that in a recent piece. Lombardo spoke with NFL executives about a possible Jonathan Taylor trade, and an AFC South scout named the Chiefs as a team to watch out for, saying Taylor could “be the thunder to Isiah Pacheco's lightning.”
𝗧𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚: An AFC scout says to “watch out” for the #Chiefs as a potential landing spot for #Colts star RB Jonathan Taylor, per @MattLombardoNFL
— JPAFootball (@jasrifootball) August 1, 2023
“Taylor's a fit for any of the 31 other teams. But look out for Kansas City. He'd be the thunder to Isiah Pacheco's… pic.twitter.com/rqyEtUQAUE
Would Chiefs really trade for Jonathan Taylor?
This may just be someone from a rival AFC South team doing some wishful thinking that Taylor leaves the division, because no one sees Kansas City acquiring Jonathan Taylor. Would it be fun? Absolutely; it’s like putting together a video game offense. However, as great as Taylor is, that move wouldn’t make sense for the Chiefs for several reasons.
For starters, Kansas City stumbled upon a gem in Isiah Pacheco. The Chiefs selected Pacheco in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL Draft. As a rookie, he exceeded all expectations, emerging as the team’s top running back en route to their Super Bowl victory. He finished year one with 170 carries for 830 yards and five touchdowns in the regular season. In three playoff games, Pacheco had 37 carries for 197 yards and one touchdown.
With a talented running back like that, on an extremely cheap rookie contract, there’s no way the Chiefs will unnecessarily add an expensive veteran. They already have enough talent on the roster that they are struggling to pay. All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones is currently holding out for a new contract. There’s simply no way the Chiefs will trade for Jonathan Taylor and extend him.