The Indianapolis Colts are really banged up right now, with Jonathan Taylor, Michael Pittman Jr., Josh Downs, and Anthony Richardson all battling various injuries. Let’s break down each player’s availability for Sunday’s game against the Tennessee Titans and the fantasy impact of these ailments.
What’s The Latest On Jonathan Taylor’s Injury?
Unfortunately, Taylor has been ruled out for Sunday’s contest against the Titans. This will be the second consecutive game that Taylor has missed, and what makes this injury even more concerning is that it’s the same ankle that he sprained in 2022 when he missed most of the 2022 season.
Taylor initially suffered the injury with 8:52 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Colts’ 27-24 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 4. After getting examined and taped along the sideline, Taylor’s day was over after rushing 21 times for 88 yards and a touchdown while adding three catches for 20 yards.
#JonathanTaylor @Colts
Headed for missed time on same right anklehttps://t.co/RUlUTofVgA pic.twitter.com/rG3IV59nGi— David J. Chao – ProFootballDoc (@ProFootballDoc)
Shortly after, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported that Taylor’s sprain is a “pretty mild version,” with a source adding that he is “okay.”
High-ankle sprains typically have a four-to-six-week recovery timeline, so even a mild sprain can sideline a player for several weeks.
After the game, it sounded like Taylor didn’t expect to miss much time, as he told ESPN’s Stephen Holder that he was feeling “1000 percent” confident about his ankle and added: “I’m feeling pretty good. We came out with the win, so I’m excited to attack this week because this is going to be another tough one.”
After being held to just 48 rushing yards in Week 1, Taylor had eclipsed 100 yards on the ground in two straight games before the injury. He scored two touchdowns in the Colts’ Week 3 win against the Chicago Bears. He was one of just four running backs across the NFL to finish as a top-16 producer at the position in Weeks 2, 3, and 4 (alongside Derrick Henry, Alvin Kamara, and Jahmyr Gibbs), ripping off a 20+ yard run and a 10+ yard reception in each of those contests.
Taylor’s stable role and supporting cast again have him identified as one of the best and safest options in our game when he is on the field. Through four games this season, his production over expectation is right where you’d expect it, and his yards gained rate (84.7% of his carries) is tracking for a career-best.
Unfortunately, Taylor has now missed 14 games since the start of the 2022 season. We have seen these injuries sideline Taylor for extended periods of time before, and there’s a chance this injury is no different. Indianapolis doesn’t go on bye until Week 14, meaning that he will have to work through this injury without the benefit of an off week.
Will the Colts look to take it easy with their star back over the next two weeks (they host the banged-up Miami Dolphins in Week 7) and hope to have Taylor back in the mix for a brutal phase of their schedule when they face the Houston Texans, Minnesota Vikings, Buffalo Bills, New York Jets, and Detroit Lions from Weeks 8-12? At the moment, that sounds like it might be a best-case scenario.
What’s The Latest On Michael Pittman Jr.’s Injury?
Sunday Update: Pittman is active.
If you’re a Colts fan or a fantasy manager with Pittman, this week was quite the rollercoaster of emotions.
On Wednesday, Fox Sports’ NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported that Pittman’s nagging back injury would likely sideline him for multiple weeks and that “he could be placed on IR,” meaning he would miss the next four games.
However, two days later, Pittman was a full participant at practice and now it looks like he has a chance to play this Sunday against the Titans. He’s officially listed as questionable.
On Friday, Schultz clarified that while the Colts considered placing the wide receiver on injured reserve, Pittman has decided to play through his nagging back injury.
While speaking to reporters, Pittman joked that his back has “never been better.” When asked if he’ll play, he said: “I want to be out there for everybody in [the locker room], so we’ll see what happens. But nothing’s guaranteed. Everything is kind of still on the table.”
#Colts’ Michael Pittman Jr., tongue-in-cheek, on his back: “Never been better.”
Will he play? “We’ll see what happens, but nothing’s guaranteed …”
Can he make it worse? “There’s a lot of things to consider …”
Does his back nag him in games? “I don’t feel nothing on Sundays.” pic.twitter.com/DhO44l1DpI
— James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid)
“He’s feeling really good, so we’ll see where that goes,” said Colts head coach Shane Steichen.
This is certainly a situation to monitor as the 1 p.m. ET kickoff approaches, but it obviously is much more promising than the update we received on Wednesday.
The Colts’ WR1 posted a career-best 109 receptions, 1,152 receiving yards, and four touchdowns for Indy in 2023 but hasn’t been as productive this season.
He finished outside the top 50 fantasy WRs in Weeks 1, 2, and 3 before rebounding as a top-24 option with Joe Flacco operating as Indy’s primary quarterback over the past two weeks. If Pittman is sidelined for Sunday’s game, this would open more targets for Alec Pierce, Adonai Mitchell, and — if he plays — Josh Downs.
What’s The Latest On Josh Downs Injury?
Sunday Update: Downs is active.
Speaking of Downs, he’s currently battling a toe injury after missing the first two games of the season due to a high-ankle sprain. Downs failed to practice on Wednesday and Thursday, but he was a full participant on Friday and was “moving around pretty good,” according to ESPN’s Stephen Holder. He’s officially listed as questionable.
If Downs can’t play on Sunday against the Titans, this would be a significant blow for the Colts, as the sophomore wide receiver has received a team-high 35.1% target rate, which ranks second among all NFL wide receivers behind only Cooper Kupp.
If Flacco is under center, that’s excellent for Downs’ stock, as he has been targeted on 29.4% of Flacco’s throws this season. He would profile as a strong PPR Flex as long as Flacco is under center. Since his ankle injury cost him time early in September, we don’t have a clear picture of how his role works in a Richardson-led offense.
As it stands, Downs is the WR22 on a per-game basis this season. If Richardson is announced the starter, Downs will settle outside of my top 30, in the same range as both Titans receivers, but if this is again the Flacco show, he’ll be bumped half a dozen spots and profile as a fine Flex play in PPR formats.
If one or both of Downs and Pittman are out, look for Mitchell and Pierce to receive the lion’s share of the targets. Tight end Drew Ogletree could also be a deep league Hail Mary at a very thin position given his status as the receiving TE in the Colts’ offense (targeted on 16% of his routes, the highest of any Indy tight end).
What’s The Latest On Anthony Richardson’s Injury?
Sunday Update: Anthony Richardson is inactive. He will serve as the emergency QB3. Joe Flacco will start.
Richardson was sidelined for nearly all of Week 4 and did not play in Week 5 due to an oblique injury. The second-year quarterback was limited during last week’s practices and downgraded from questionable to doubtful on Saturday.
However, Richardson logged full practices on Thursday and Friday of this week and it sounds like he’ll play on Sunday against the Titans. Steichen said that Richardson “has had huge strides this week, for sure,” and labeled the QB a game-time decision.
ESPN’s Stephen Holder reported that Richardson is “on track to play after participating in the past three practices” and is “preparing to return to the lineup.”
Anthony Richardson does not look like he is nursing a bad hip. pic.twitter.com/tmeRjR3Ljz
— Kent Sterling (@KentSterling)
Richardson ranks 24th in EPA per dropback (-0.08), partly driven by his league-low 50.6% completion percentage. Conversely, Flacco ranks second in EPA per dropback (0.23), behind only Washington Commanders QB Jayden Daniels.
Richardson has now missed 14 games in his young NFL career (not to mention his three early exits).
It’s worth noting that Green Bay Packers QB Malik Willis ran all over these Titans in Week 3, rushing for 73 yards and a touchdown as the Packers racked up 188 total rushing yards. In theory, that should pave the way for Richardson’s versatility to own elite upside in this matchup. But are we sure the Colts will unleash him as a runner?
Over the offseason, the Colts made a point to say that they weren’t going to ask Richardson to stop doing what makes him special. That sounds great in July, but in October after a DNP, I find it hard to believe there isn’t at least some hesitancy about giving him a ton of rushing attempts, as they want to keep their franchise centerpiece on the field.
Richardson won’t crack my top 12 this week, which is in part due to pocket passers in good spots to flirt with their ceiling outcomes (the New York Giants host Joe Burrow while Kirk Cousins has an extended week to scheme against the Carolina Panthers).
