The Green Bay Packers have already shown they’re willing to kick the tires on Jonathan Taylor, and the idea may be coming back around at the right time.
Brian Gutekunst tried to work out a deal for the Colts running back in 2023, but Indianapolis wanted wide receiver Christian Watson in return. Now, three years later, there’s at least a believable path for another run at it, and CBS Sports’ Garrett Podell has Taylor on a list of players who could eventually demand a major return.
Podell’s case is built around Taylor’s contract situation in Indianapolis. He called Taylor the second most productive running back of the 2020s, behind only Derrick Henry, and predicted the Colts star could ask out “by the 2026 trade deadline.”
“Taylor enters the final year of his three-year, $42 million contract in 2026, so if the Colts start off slow thanks to unreliable starts to the year by Jones and Pierce, it would be in both the franchise’s and Taylor’s best interest to part ways at the trade deadline.
“Compensation to get the deal done: Third-round pick” - Garrett Podell
Taylor is expected to make $13 million this season, and in 2026 he’ll be in the final year of the extension he signed in 2023.
For Green Bay, the fit is obvious enough. If the team isn’t sold on Josh Jacobs’ future after his arrest, Taylor would give them a proven answer in the backfield. That’s a big reason this trade idea has real traction now.
Through six NFL seasons with the Colts, Taylor has piled up 84 games played, 78 starts, 1,551 rushing attempts, 7,598 rushing yards, 69 rushing touchdowns, 187 receptions, 1,469 receiving yards and 7 receiving touchdowns.
At 27, he’d be a major lift for a Packers offense trying to push beyond simply being in the playoff mix.
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