MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jonathan Taylor snaked through a crease off the left side of the line and outraced the defense for a 38-yard touchdown to cap the opening drive for the Indianapolis Colts, giving them a lead they maintained until early in the fourth quarter on Sunday.
The Colts never got close to the end zone again in a 16-10 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
How many more times can the Colts turn to their three-time Pro Bowl tailback for a momentum-seizing touchdown? With the season skidding away and the Nov. 10 trade deadline approaching, there's no certainty Taylor will be around after it passes.
Three-time All-Pro left guard Quenton Nelson also will figure prominently on lists of trade candidates. After general manager Chris Ballard was fired before the trip to Minnesota, the heat on coach Shane Steichen has turned up as well.
“I just feel like everyone came to work and are doing their best," Nelson said. “I don’t know what else to say.”
The visiting locker room at U.S. Bank Stadium was particularly sullen. Defensive tackle DeForest Buckner was a bit testy when asked by a reporter about his level of frustration.
“How about you guess?” Buckner said. “Yeah, I'm frustrated. Same thing: We lost.”
There's no running from the situation for the Colts. Even Taylor's wife posted on social media this week about the possibility of moving on from the team that drafted him in the second round in 2020.
“You know everybody's on TikTok these days,” Taylor said, downplaying the potential for any distraction. “Just got to stay focused.”
Despite his season-best average of 5.3 yards per rush and a solid performance by the defense, the Colts (2-5) dropped their third straight game as Daniel Jones — like so many other quarterbacks this year — was overwhelmed by Minnesota's relentless pass rush.
“You come out, you play hard, you fight, and it always comes down to a couple plays,” Taylor said. “It’s a very good team over there, but at the end of the day, I know we have the guys. We knew it was going to be a challenge, but you’ve got to think about how to find ways to just make one more play than your opponent.”
Taylor, who rushed for 1,585 yards and an NFL-leading 18 touchdowns last season, has not reached the 100-yard mark in 15 games since his 244-yard romp over Atlanta in Week 10 last year.
Against a Minnesota defense that leads the league in several statistical categories and has allowed just 74 points in six games, Taylor had 18 carries for 95 yards and two catches for 15 yards.
With some timely boosts from rookie Seth McGowan, who rushed 11 times for 46 yards, the Colts largely met their goal of moving the ball on the ground to try to counteract the constant blitzing dialed up by Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
Jones still took four sacks for 44 yards, and on the second play of the last-chance drive, his pass under pressure was intercepted by Harrison Smith near midfield to clinch the Colts' 12th loss in 14 games since starting 8-2 last season.
Jones will remain the starter, Steichen said, despite only four touchdown passes and seven interceptions in seven games.
The Colts need a spark from more than just the quarterback.
“Staying down and wallowing and feeling sorry yourself is never going to get you anywhere,” McGowan said. “You can either have faith or you can doubt your situation. You can’t do both. We’re going to choose faith. We’re going to choose to believe in the guys in this room, and we’re going to choose to work. That’s all we can do. I feel good about everybody in here, and I feel good about our future.”
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