The Denver Broncos face the Indianapolis Colts in Week 2, and Jonathan Taylor could embarrass them if they are not ready.
Denver seeks to start 2-0 on the 2025 season with a win over the Indianapolis Colts in Week 2. All Indy did in Week 1 was blowout the Miami Dolphins, but ideally, Denver is a totally different beast. The Broncos can't just slouch over in this game even if they blew the Colts out in 2024.
This is a talented team, and they've now got a different starting QB in Daniel Jones, and if the team's defense isn't ready, the Colts' stud RB could beat them in the worst way.
Jonathan Taylor is an exceptional running back and could burn the Denver Broncos
Over his career, he's rushed for 6,084 yards on 1,246 carries and has added 51 touchdowns. However, his home/away splits could spell disaster for Denver. Here are his rushing yardage totals at home in recent years:
2024: 790 yards, 8 touchdowns, 5.1 yards per carry
2023: 563 yards, 5 touchdowns, 5.5 yards per carry
2022: 359 yards, 2 touchdowns, 3.6 yards per carry
2021: 971 yards, 9 touchdowns, 5.7 yards per carry
2020: 673 yards, 6 touchdowns, 5.4 yards per carry
All but one season across his career, Jonathan Taylor has averaged at least 5.1 yards per carry at home, so he has done a lot of damage when playing in front of the home crowd. When the Broncos hosted the Colts in 2024, Taylor ran for 107 yards on 22 carries.
Simply put, Taylor is one of the best pure runners in the NFL and can easily break this game open if Denver is not ready. Sure, Indy has a ton of playmakers at receiver and tight end, but if they're smart, establishing the run is going to be what they try to do.
Denver hasn't had a running back of Taylor's caliber in quite some time, and if the defense is not ready, they could get burned by one of the best RBs in the NFL.