The Indianapolis Colts got back into the thick of the AFC playoff race with a blowout 41-15 win over the Buffalo Bills, mostly thanks to their running back Jonathan Taylor who had a career-high 32 carries for 185 yards, and he became just the 18th player in NFL history to score five touchdowns.
The 185 yards moved Taylor to the top of the NFL charts (1,122 yards), ahead of Tennessee’s Derrick Henry (injured). He is also the third-youngest player to have five touchdowns in a game and the third to get all five in just three quarters. Taylor is only the eighth player since 1950 with 1,200 scrimmage yards in an eight-game span and also has 29 receptions for 303 yards and a touchdown.
The Colts won five of their past six games to move above .500 for the first time this season, after having a slow start with a 1-4 record.
Colts quarterback Carson Wentz (most hated guy in Philly with Ben Simmons) praised his teammate saying: “You get a sense of his confidence. But you never know if you walk right by him in the locker room, in the grocery store or whatever. He’s a low-key guy. He knows what he can do. He’s confident. … The game he had, honestly, doesn’t surprise me anymore because every single week he shows up and shows out.”
Another teammate, running back Nyheim Hines said: “He’s sending a message to the league. It’s been amazing watching him play. Great to watch him finish runs and make people miss. He’s a complete back … If there’s any skill position [MVP], Jonathan Taylor needs to be in it. Him and Cooper Kupp. JT is the first in line for a non-quarterback player.”
Colts coach Frank Reich commented about how Taylor doesn’t really like to get so much attention: “I love when we try to put attention on him and you can tell he’s uncomfortable, I love that feeling. We all like the feeling when somebody [who] doesn’t want the attention feels uncomfortable.”
He also added that the following part of the season looks more challenging than the first part: “We are hoping that we can just continue to build that workload like in the track and field. Really have a second half of the year that’s stronger and faster than the first half of the year. That would be the goal.”