Star Running Back Jonathan Taylor Given Permission to Seek Trade From Colts

The Indianapolis Colts have granted star running back Jonathan Taylor permission to seek a trade, according to NFL Network.

Taylor is entering the final year of his rookie contract, and reportedly requested a trade in July during a meeting with Colts owner Jim Irsay, per NFL Network. After that meeting, Irsay said that the team wouldn't trade Taylor, according to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer.

The 24-year-old All-Pro was eligible for a contract extension this summer, but the Colts did not sign him to a new deal. Taylor led the NFL in rushing yards and touchdowns in 2021, but missed six games due to an ankle injury in 2022.

Taylor's contract situation this offseason has prompted Irsay to make a series of controversial statements regarding Taylor and the running back position as a whole. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, on July 26, Irsay wrote that it would be "inappropriate" for a position group to re-negotiate the current NFL collective bargaining agreement, and that agents were selling "bad faith." Taylor's agent Malki Kawa responded to the post, writing "bad faith is not paying your top offensive player."

NFL Network's Ian Rappoport re-posted the exchange, writing that he hoped the relationship between Taylor and the Colts can be fixed, and Kawa responded by saying "I doubt it."

On July 29, Irsay addressed Taylor's contract situation again.

“If I die tonight and Jonathan Taylor is out of the league, no one’s gonna miss us. The league goes on. We know that. The National Football (League) rolls on. It doesn’t matter who comes and who goes, and it’s a privilege to be a part of it," Irsay said, according to The Athletic.

Now, Taylor will reportedly get the opportunity to move on from this relationship, and seek a trade prior to the start of the season.