The Indianapolis Colts and the Jacksonville Jaguars are playing in Week 18 tonight with a playoff spot for the winning team and elimination for the loser. All-Pro running back Jonathan Taylor was seen heading to the locker room with the trainer towards the end of the third quarter and has been diagnosed with a heel injury and is questionable to return to the game.
Jonathan Taylor has been one of the most significant players in this game as before the injury he has 21 rushing attempts for 165 yards (7.9 yards per carry) with a rushing touchdown as well as a pair of receptions for eight yards. He has been one of the main reasons the Colts have been able to fight back from an eight-point halftime deficit.
Jonathan Taylor has been doing very well this year despite dealing with some injuries during the season. On the year, he has 139 rushing attempts for 553 yards (4.0 yards per carry) with six rushing touchdowns as well as 17 catches for 145 yards (8.5 yards per reception) with one receiving touchdown.
As of this writing, Taylor has not re-emerged from the locker room so it will be interesting to see how the offense looks if he misses the fourth quarter.
How significant of a loss is Jonathan Taylor if he is ruled out for the remainder of Week 18?
If Jonathan Taylor is not able to play in the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans, it could be a massive blow for the offense. Quarterback Gardner Minshew has not been throwing for many yards as he has 109 passing yards early in the fourth quarter. Outside of Taylor, the running game has struggled as well as the combination of Minshew and running back Zack Moss have seven rushes for 39 yards.
With no Taylor on the field, it allows the Texans’ defense to not worry about the running game too much as Taylor has been their best option all night. It will be difficult for Indianapolis to take advantage without their best player but need to do just that if he is unable to return.
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