Jonathan Taylor Injury Update: Will Taylor Play in Week 13? Fantasy Impact and More

Coming off his best fantasy football performance of the 2023 season, Indianapolis Colts RB Jonathan Taylor picked up an injury that could threaten his status for Sunday’s game against the Tennessee Titans.

Let’s take a closer look at the most recent news we have on Taylor and the potential fantasy impact this injury could have on the Colts’ offense.

Latest Injury Update on Jonathan Taylor

Just as the 2021 NFL rushing champion appeared to be returning to his dominant form, Taylor appears to have suffered an injury that could put his status for Week 13 — and potentially beyond — in jeopardy.

According to a recent report from Ian Rapoport, Taylor picked up a thumb injury against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and is going to require further evaluation.

We simply don’t have enough information yet to detail exactly what type of injury he sustained to his thumb or how severe the injury is, but the fact Taylor’s thumb is going to need a closer look is certainly cause for concern.

Will Taylor Play This Week?

Indianapolis has not held its first practice of the week heading into their AFC South matchup against Tennessee yet. So, we don’t have an injury report detailing exactly what type of practice work Taylor will see while dealing with this thumb injury.

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The sheer fact Taylor’s thumb is going to need further evaluation suggests that the injury could be significant, and there is a chance he could miss the team’s game on Sunday altogether.

Editor’s Note: According to a recent report from Ian Rapoport, Colts owner Jim Irsay confirmed Taylor’s injury and tells James Boyd that Taylor will have surgery on Wednesday and miss a couple of weeks. The source added that no decision has been made on Taylor being sent to Injured Reserve yet. 

What Does This Mean for Zack Moss’ Fantasy Ranking?

Fantasy managers who drafted Taylor in the first three rounds of their fantasy draft prior to the news he was going to be unavailable for the first four games of the season were already put in a hole to start the season.

Taylor returned in Week 5 only to produce 18 rushing yards on six carries, which was 17 carries fewer than teammate Zack Moss. What followed in the coming weeks was nearly a full-blown timeshare in the Colts’ backfield, with the two players essentially splitting carries through Week 8.

In the two games before the team’s bye, Taylor out-touched Moss (47 to 8) and appeared to have firmly reasserted himself as the clear bell-cow back for the Colts.

If this thumb injury turns out to be significant for Taylor, Moss would instantly see a huge jump in fantasy value. His production as the leading man in this backfield with Taylor out of the lineup was outstanding.

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From Weeks 2 through 4, Moss saw more carries than any other running back in the league and was fourth in rushing yards with 280. During that same span, Moss averaged a league-leading 24 touches per game, which helped produce an average of 17.4 fantasy points per game in PPR formats.

If Taylor misses any time in the coming weeks, Moss would firmly enter the top-15 conversation at the RB position on a weekly basis.

One could make the argument that Moss has been a major thorn in the side of many Taylor shareholders this season. However, Moss proved earlier this season that a feature back in this Colts offense can be a major fantasy difference-maker.

If Moss is available on your waiver wire, then I would sprint to my computer to make a bid on him and aggressively use a hefty amount of my remaining FAAB on him.

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