NFL

Jonathan Taylor Can Be a Big-Time Producer for the Colts

Austan Kas  —  @AustanKas Apr 25th, 2020

Jonathan Taylor or D'Andre Swift.

That's been the debate at the top of the 2020 running back class in fantasy football circles all offseason. Now we know landing spots, and we can add another layer to the discussion. And we can also add another player to it as Clyde Edwards-Helaire is now in the mix, too.

As for Taylor, he went to the Indianapolis Colts early in the second round, with Indy trading up to take him 41st overall.

What should we expect from Taylor in 2020?

A Top-Tier Prospect

From a pure statistical point of view, Taylor is a really complete prospect.

His final-season total touchdown share (46.43%) and final-season total yards per team play (2.36) were both elite marks. Per PlayerProfiler, Taylor had a college dominator rating -- the percentage of yards and touchdowns he accounted for in his team's offense -- of 41.8%, which ranks in the 93rd percentile. Taylor's speed score (121.7), which factors in his size, is in the 99th percentile, and his 40 time (4.39) is in the 98th percentile.

Both PlayerProfiler and our JJ Zachariason have Ezekiel Elliott as Taylor's top comparable. Going by Brandon Gdula's prospect model, Adrian Peterson, Derrick Henry, and Chris Johnson are the only other prospects to have a speed score of at least 113 and a dominator rating of at least 40%.

So, yeah, Taylor is a very good prospect.

The only hiccup in Taylor's profile is that his final-season reception share of 10.6% leaves a little to be desired. At the same time, it's also not a bad number, and it hints that he could do more as a pass-catcher if asked to do so.

Fantasy Fit With Indy

Volume is the name of the game in fantasy, and that's especially true at running back. Well, volume might not be on Taylor's side right away with Marlon Mack in town.

But given his prospect pedigree, draft stock and the Colts' stout O-Line, Taylor has a strong argument to be an early pick in dynasty rookie drafts -- possibly the RB1 in the class. In redraft leagues, he's on the RB2/3 map from the jump and has a chance to rise throughout the summer if it looks like he'll be an every-down player. The camp battle between Mack and Taylor will be one to watch.

Our JJ Zachariason projects Taylor for 1,006.3 rushing yards and 8.9 tuddies, thrusting him into the RB2 convo right away.