With quarterback Anthony Richardson reportedly out the rest of the season, the Indianapolis Colts would probably be wise to turn to their running game a little more going forward. But will that mean more Jonathan Taylor or more Zack Moss for fantasy football?
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Fantasy Outlook for Jonathan Taylor This Week
Taylor has seen limited work since returning to the team in Week 5. Over his two games, the former rushing champion has just 14 carries for 37 yards, rushing for fewer than 20 yards in each game. He’s still waiting to score his first touchdown of the season.
This is the first time in his career that Taylor has failed to rush for at least 20 yards in consecutive weeks.
It should be noted that the Colts are coming off season lows in rush attempts (17) and yards (44) in last week’s loss to the Jaguars. It’s not as if anyone was producing from the running back position in Week 6.
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That said, the question is still when will Taylor finally regain his All-Pro form? He was on the field for three times as many offensive snaps last week (33) than in the first game in Week 5 (10), so if you believe that he will get more touches as the season goes on, that’s certainly a fair approach.
Taylor has just one 100-yard rushing game in his last 12 games, dating back to last season though. Over those 12 games, Taylor has also scored only three touchdowns.
On top of that, the Colts are hosting the Browns, who possess the league’s No. 1 defense, allowing just over 200 total yards per game (200.4).
Fantasy Outlook for Zack Moss This Week
Moss, on the other hand, is the league’s No. 2 rusher with 466 yards, behind only Christian McCaffrey. He has done this despite missing the season opener as he was recovering from a broken arm.
And even when he struggles on the ground, like last week’s season lows for carries (7) and yards (21) against Jacksonville, Moss was still productive, scoring a touchdown, his fourth of the season, and catching six passes for 38 yards.
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This is the best season of Moss’ career. He needs just 16 more yards to set a career high for a season, set back in his rookie season of 2020 with the Bills (481).
Even with his seven carries last week, Moss is still averaging nearly 20 rush attempts a game this season (19.2), after never averaging even 10 carries a game before this season.
Even with Taylor back, Moss is not having any reduction in time on the field, having played in nearly 64% of the Colts’ offensive snaps (63.7%) over the last two weeks.
Which Colts RB Should You Start?
Realistically, this is a tough matchup for any Colts back. A tremendous defense in the Browns, down your starting quarterback (Richardson), and coming off a terrible effort in the running game last week.
While Taylor’s career track record does look better than Moss’, at the moment, it’s hard to back anyone but Moss in this spot. A second poor effort and the debate certainly has more validity.
But for now, take Moss over Taylor.