The Jonathan Taylor market is already telling teams what it will take - and it’s not cheap.
Multiple reports say the Giants put a 2nd- and 5th-round pick on the table for the Colts running back before the deadline, only to get turned down. That’s the clearest signal yet that Indianapolis is aiming higher, with the rumored ask described as a Christian McCaffrey-like package: a 2nd-, 3rd-, 4th-, and 5th-rounder. So far, nobody interested seems eager to pay that kind of freight.
That matters for Denver, because the Broncos are in position to make a real run at Taylor if they choose to get aggressive. They just picked up their seventh win of the 2026 season, moved to 7-2, and carry a five-game winning streak into the bye week. With the November 10 trade deadline closing in, the question is whether George Paton and Sean Payton are willing to make the kind of move they have usually avoided.
Taylor, for his part, looked like a player saying goodbye after the Colts’ game against the Dallas Cowboys. As Ari Meirov posted, “#Colts RB Jonathan Taylor gave a farewell to Indianapolis and Colts fans after today’s game, in case it was his last with the organization.
Don’t see this often.
(🎥 @WISHNews8) pic.twitter.com/n4uf3C3W7f
- Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 8, 2026”
Whether that video ends up meaning anything or not, Denver’s interest still makes plenty of sense after its win over the Panthers. The Broncos managed only 3.0 yards per carry against one of the league’s worst run defenses, and while Jonah Coleman has had his moments, the ground game still wasn’t where it needs to be. Coleman and JK Dobbins combined for 3.57 yards per carry, but Dobbins again faded out of the second half.
At this point, the idea that Denver is simply protecting Dobbins with some kind of load management doesn’t hold much water. The bigger clue is that he isn’t being trusted to help close games. That says plenty.
Dobbins has just 18 touches over the last three weeks combined, and only one of those came as a catch. That reception came Sunday against Carolina, when he bobbled what looked like it could have been a touchdown or a major gain and ended up tackled out of bounds short of the line to gain.
That leaves the Broncos leaning heavily on Coleman, and that can only go so far. With RJ Harvey on injured reserve and Tyler badie also out, the case for spending draft capital on Taylor keeps getting stronger.
Denver is off in Week 10, which gives Paton and Payton time to watch the deadline unfold, but not much reason to sit on their hands. This franchise has never really made a true buyer’s move at the deadline under Paton, even if it has been involved in blockbusters before. Those deals have all been on the selling side.
If there’s ever been a moment to buck that trend, this is it. Taylor is the kind of player who can change the shape of an offense, and Denver’s attack could use exactly that.
The offensive line questions are real, but the upside is obvious. On a team with Super Bowl ambitions, that kind of talent is hard to pass up.
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Sean Payton offered some early reassurance afterward, saying the team expects the bye week to help as both players recover. Still, any concussion situation tends to draw extra attention in the days that follow, and the Broncos will be watching closely to see how their secondary and receiving group hold up once the team gets back to work. [Read more 🡒]