Colts bolt as Taylor thrives

The Indianapolis Colts are emerging as a contender for a Super Bowl place after another commanding performance Sunday.

The Colts smashed the Los Angeles Chargers 38-24 at SoFi Stadium to move to 6-1 on the year and stay top of the AFC South, AFC, and NFL.

Colts running back Jonathan Taylor destroyed the Chargers’ defense on his way to a third three-touchdown performance in seven games this year. Taylor roasted the Chargers’ run defense to finish with 94 rushing yards on 16 carries for a 5.9 average and three rushing scores.

He also hauled in three catches on as many targets for another 38 receiving yards. Taylor is the NFL’s undisputed best running back, and deserves to not just to be in the Offensive Player of the Year conversation, but also for the MVP.

“He’s the best back in the league right now,” coach Shane Steichen said. “There’s no doubt. He’s running hard. He’s running physical. He’s got great vision. Yeah, he’s balling out.”

Taylor is only the fourth player in NFL history with three games with three rushing touchdowns within his team’s first seven games, joining Jim Brown (1958), Priest Holmes (2004) and Derrick Henry (2021).

Taylor leads the NFL in rushing yards (697) and rushing touchdowns (10).

Indianapolis took a chance on quarterback Daniel Jones in the offseason, signing him to a one-year, $14 million contract after six mercurial seasons with the New York Giants. The Colts have enjoyed plenty of return on the investment, with Jones now leading the NFL in QBR (81.3) and completing a career-best 71% of his pass attempts. He was 23-of-34 passing for 288 yards and two scores Sunday.

“I always knew that we had really good players here and we were just missing something,” receiver Michael Pittman Jr said. “And that’s something that Dan brought. I’ve always had confidence in our guys. We were just one player away.”

Time will tell how far this offense can take this Colts team, but the early signs remain positive. “We go into every game thinking we’re scoring 40,” tight end Mo Alie-Cox said. “I mean, we are on the verge of doing it again. Every time we get the ball, we think we’re going to score.”