January 2, 2022 By: Kevin Kissner

Colts RB Jonathan Taylor deserves NFL MVP consideration

There have been 17 seasons in which a running back has won the NFL’s league MVP award.

The most recent occurrence happened in 2012 when Vikings running back Adrian Peterson rushed for over 2,000 yards just one season after tearing his ACL. Before his magical season, it was six seasons prior when LaDanian Tomlinson won the league MVP after rushing for a record 28 touchdowns.

It’s safe to say it’s rare for a running back to win the MVP award in today’s pass-happy NFL, but it could happen this season. Colts running back Jonathan Taylor is having a special year and is one of the reasons why Indianapolis is back in the playoff chase.

Taylor didn’t rush for 100 yards in a game this season until week four, but since then Taylor has been the hottest back in football. From Week 4 to this past week, Taylor has rushed for 1,455 yards with an average of 5.71 yards per carry. During those rushes, the Wisconsin alumni has gotten into the endzone 17 times.

The second-year back is on pace to finish his 17-game season with over 1,800 yards on the ground. Since 2014, only DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry rushed for over 1,800 yards, but neither won the MVP. Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers took home the honor over Murray and Henry in those seasons.

Looking at the currently betting odds at numerous sportsbooks, Taylor currently has the third best odds to win the league MVP with Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady leading the way.

Now one important thing needs to happen if Taylor is going to win the MVP, Indy needs to hold on to their playoff spot in which they currently own the 5^th seed. The Colts can still win their division also, trailing the Titans by just one game.

With Taylor playing on fire right now, quarterback Carson Wentz has stepped up his game, by not having to do more than he has to. When the Colts started off 0-3, it appeared that Frank Reich was trying to pass to set up the run. From Week 4 on, the Colts are running to set up the pass and that’s a winning formula. During Indy’s 12 games, Wentz has thrown 22 touchdowns to just five interceptions. It’s safe to say that there’s been a load taken off his back thanks to Taylor dominating in the run game.

Taylor currently leads the NFL in rushing yards with 1,626 with the next healthy running back in Joe Mixon rushing for just 1,159 yards. Taylor also has rushed for a league leading 17 touchdowns with James Connor just three touchdowns back. Taylor is also the only healthy running back to average over 100 yards per game this season on the ground.

With the way the NFL is operating this season, Taylor could be well on his way to becoming the NFL’s most valuable player.