Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesThe Indianapolis Colts were reportedly never close to finding a Jonathan Taylor trade amid rival teams' concerns with the running back's contract demands.
Dianna Russini of The Athletic spoke to one league executive who noted "trade compensation wasn't the issue" but instead Taylor's desire for a long-term deal. Indianapolis reportedly wanted the equivalent of a high second-round pick in exchange for Taylor.
After a standoff that resulted in Taylor being placed on the physically unable to perform list, the Colts wound up signing him to a three-year, $42 million extension with $26.5 million in guarantees, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Given the fact no one was certain Taylor would even play for the Colts this season, the extension came as a shock. Colts owner Jim Irsay even publicly admitted the contract was agreed to "sooner than [he] think[s] should have happened" and came after negotiations went "off the rails."
"This is a great deal, a very huge deal for a running back," Irsay said, per Nate Atkins of the Indianapolis Star. "It's sooner than I think should have happened, but I was OK with it because of his age and the four-year average."
Taylor rushed for 3,841 yards and 33 touchdowns over his first three NFL seasons. He led the NFL with 1,811 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2021 before suffering through an injury-plagued 2022 campaign.
Taylor's recent injury history, combined with Indianapolis' four-win season last year, were cited as the biggest reasons the team avoided a long-term contract. Injuries and the lagging running back market likely played a part in teams being hesitant to trade for Taylor, who is arguably the NFL's best running back when healthy.
In the end, though, fences were mended enough for Taylor to not only return but do so as a paid man.
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