IND Indianapolis Colts · RB· #28

Jonathan Taylor

Age
27
Height
5'10"
Weight
226 lbs
College
Wisconsin
Drafted
2020, No. 41 overall (IND)
Experience
7th NFL season

51

Overall grade

24th of 54 running backs

Typical

about average; 50 is average

Grades updated Rechecked every few hours on game days

The read

Jonathan's best number is EPA per carry: +0.03, 13th of 54 among running backs.

The number holding him back is broken tackles: 2.3 per 100, 41st of 51.

Role is shrinking: When he plays he is on the field for about 7 of every 10 plays lately, down from about 9 of every 10 plays before.

Written from his numbers, not from film. 5 games are behind the season figures.

How he stacks up

Every graded stat at a glance, against all the running backs in the league.

  • EPA per carry+0.0313th of 54
  • Explosive runs12.0%15th of 54
  • Success rate40%22nd of 54small sample
  • Yards after contact1.8 yds24th of 51
  • Stuffed runs18%30th of 54
  • Broken tackles2.3 per 10041st of 51

Left is the worst at his job, right is the best, and the line down the middle is average. The bubble is his percentile: 90 means better than nine in ten qualifying running backs. Faded bars are still small samples.

How he has progressed

Where he has ranked among running backs after each week, and every game behind it.

WorstMiddleBestrecent12345Week 1: 83rd percentileWeek 2: 91st percentileWeek 3: 78th percentileWeek 4: 89th percentileWeek 5: 77th percentile77th

Season rank holding near the 77th percentile since Wk 1.

The line is his season-to-date rank among players at his position after each week, from 100 (the best) to 0 (the worst). It rises when he passes other players, not when he has one big game. Early weeks are noisier because fewer plays are behind them. The shaded weeks are the recent stretch.

EPA per carry game by game
WeekOpponentThat gamecarriesSeason rank after
1vs BAL+0.121983rd pct
2vs KC+0.162491st pct
3vs HOU−0.192278th pct
4vs WAS+0.182089th pct
5vs PIT−0.191577th pct

One game is a small sample: a single stat over 20 carries can swing on a handful of plays. Shaded rows are the recent stretch.

The numbers, in context

Each one against every running back with at least 20 carries. Right on the strip is better.

EPA per carry

Well above typical

+0.03

13th of 54 running backs · top 25%

Expected points added: how many points the play added to (or took from) the offense's scoring chances, given the down, the distance and the field position. A 4-yard run on 3rd-and-8 loses points even though it gains yards.

The box score: Yards per carry credits a 5-yard run on 3rd-and-15 and ignores the goal-line carry that scores.

Does it show up in winning? Across 153 games league-wide, teams won 60% of the time when their running back was in the best third on EPA per carry, and 46% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: +0.02 (35) vs +0.03 before−2.1grade points downWithin the noise

Sample still growing · 100 carries · true level likely −0.14 to +0.19

Success rate

Above typical

40%

22nd of 54 running backs · top 41%

How often a carry gains enough to keep the offense on schedule.

The box score: Rushing yards pile up on carries that did not help.

Does it show up in winning? Across 153 games league-wide, teams won 67% of the time when their running back was in the best third on success rate, and 49% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 40% (35) vs 40% beforeevenWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 100 carries · true level likely 32% to 48%

Explosive runs

Above typical

12.0%

15th of 54 running backs · top 28%

The share of his carries that go 10 yards or more.

The box score: A long run is in the yardage total but its frequency is not.

Does it show up in winning? Across 153 games league-wide, teams won 74% of the time when their running back was in the best third on explosive runs, and 45% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 11.4% (35) vs 12.3% before−2.1grade points downWithin the noise

Sample still growing · 100 carries · true level likely 6.5% to 17.5%

Yards after contact

Typical

1.8 yds

24th of 51 running backs · top 48%

Yards he gains per carry after the first defender touches him. The blockers have done their job by then; this part is the back.

The box score: Rushing yards credit the line and the back alike.

Does it show up in winning? Across 128 games league-wide, teams won 71% of the time when their running back was in the best third on yards after contact, and 50% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 1.1 yds (20) vs 2.0 yds before−10.4grade points downLeaning that way

Sample still growing · 86 carries · true level likely 1.3 yds to 2.3 yds

Broken tackles

Well below typical

2.3 per 100

41st of 51 running backs · bottom 22%

Tackles he breaks per 100 carries, as charted by Pro Football Reference.

The box score: A broken tackle is not recorded anywhere in the box score.

Does it show up in winning? Across 128 games league-wide, a good or bad game on broken tackles from a running back has not lined up much with his team winning (62% wins in the best third, 55% in the worst).

Last 2 games: 5.0 per 100 (20) vs 1.5 per 100 before+6.8grade points upWithin the noise

Solid sample · 86 carries · true level likely -0.4 per 100 to 5.0 per 100

Stuffed runs

Typical

18%lower is better

30th of 54 running backs · bottom 47%

The share of his carries that gain nothing or lose yards. Fewer is better, and the line shares the blame.

The box score: Hidden inside the yards per carry.

Does it show up in winning? Across 153 games league-wide, a good or bad game on stuffed runs from a running back has not lined up much with his team winning (60% wins in the best third, 53% in the worst).

Last 2 games: 9% (35) vs 23% before+19.1grade points upA clear change

Sample still growing · 100 carries · true level likely 12% to 24%

How he plays

Tendencies: how his game differs from the running backs around him. These are not better or worse, only different, and often say as much about the offense or defense he plays in as about him.

Yards before contact

Style

2.3 yds

Right around the middle of running backs: a typical one is 2.3 yds.

Yards per carry before a defender touches him. That is mostly the line and the scheme, so it is shown, not graded.

Sample still growing · 86 carries

Runs to the edge

Style

30%

Gets to the edge, more than most running backs. A typical one is 25%.

The share of his carries run around the end instead of between the tackles.

Sample still growing · 83 carries

Carries from shotgun

Style

36%

Right around the middle of running backs: a typical one is 34%.

The share of his carries that start with the quarterback in shotgun, a sign of what kind of run game he lives in.

Solid sample · 100 carries

Playing time

He has played in 4 of his team's 4 games with snap counts, on the field for about 85% of the team's offensive plays when he plays.

Role is shrinking. When he plays he is on the field for about 7 of every 10 plays lately, down from about 9 of every 10 plays before.

Each column is a game: the share of his team's offensive snaps he played. 80% means about 8 of every 10 plays. “Out” means he did not play; a question mark means snap counts are not posted yet. Shaded games are the recent stretch.

Game by game

Every game this season: how it ended for his team, how much he played, his box score, and the advanced numbers from that one game. One game is a small sample, so read the right-hand columns as a snapshot, not his level.

Jonathan Taylor game by game
GameResultSnapsCarYdsTDEPA/carrySuccess10+ yd runsYAC/carry
Wk 1 vs BALL 23–4189%19982+0.1247%26.3%2.3 yds
Wk 2 vs KCL 30–3394%24922+0.1646%12.5%2.2 yds
Wk 3 vs HOUW 19–1785%22570−0.1927%0.0%1.7 yds
Wk 4 vs WASW 30–1371%20952+0.1855%15.0%1.1 yds
Wk 5 vs PITL 22–34–15450−0.1920%6.7%–

The box score

The traditional totals, with where each ranks among running backs. A total rewards volume, which is why the advanced numbers above matter.

Jonathan Taylor box score totals
StatTotalRank
Carries1003rd of 54
Rushing yards3879th of 54
Rushing touchdowns63rd of 54

Players with a similar profile

The running backs whose grades are closest to his across the same stats. Similar means similar numbers, not the same style of play.

Ranks are among players at the same job who have enough plays to be graded. Grades and rankings come from play-by-play, charting and snap-count data, so they cannot see blocking, route running or assignments. See how the grades work.

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Data: nflverse play-by-play, CC BY 4.0. Also FTN charting, Pro Football Reference advanced stats, snap counts and injury reports, all through nflverse. Calculations and charts by Raiders Rundown.