Pros and cons of the Eagles trading for star RB Jonathan Taylor

After three years with the Indianapolis Colts, running back Jonathan Taylor has been given permission to seek a trade. Should the Philadelphia Eagles have an interest? That depends.

Why Philadelphia should trade for Taylor

He’s a local: Taylor was excused from Colts camp last week for personal reasons but was in Philadelphia for a joint practice with the Eagles on Tuesday. Taylor grew up in Salem, New Jersey which is just 42 miles south of Lincoln Financial Field.

Maybe Taylor would like to play for his hometown team. Maybe he’d like to play for a championship contender. In Philadelphia, he can do both.  

2024: Philadelphia signed Rashaad Penny and traded for D’Andre Swift in the offseason, but neither is signed beyond this year. Neither is Boston Scott. Kenneth Gainwell and Trey Sermon are the only running backs under contract for 2024.

Any team that trades for Taylor will likely offer him an extension. The Eagles are scheduled to have $47M in cap space at the end of the season and could easily make him an offer.

Injuries: Penny and Swift haven’t played a full season since joining the NFL. Swift missed 10 games over the past three seasons while Penny played in just 18 games. 

The odds of either running back getting through 2023 unscathed aren’t good. Gainwell ran for 240 yards in 17 games last year. Are the Eagles ready to make Gainwell their feature back? Taylor is a much better option.

Why Philadelphia shouldn’t trade for Taylor

Injuries: Taylor missed six games with an ankle injury in 2022, running for 14 fewer touchdowns and gaining 950 fewer yards than he had in 2021. There’s also the matter of a back injury that he may or may not have.

By comparison, free agent running back Kareem Hunt played in all 17 games for the Browns last year and could be just as effective in a committee backfield.

Draft picks: According to reports, the Colts want a first-round pick for Taylor. This year, the Eagles used two first-round picks to draft Georgia’s Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith. Would any team trade either player for Taylor in 2023?

Indianapolis is asking a bit much for a player set to reach free agency next year. Unless Taylor’s price drops, Philadelphia should hold on to its draft capital.

Super Bowl LII: Philadelphia has one Lombardi Trophy on the mantle, and they won it without a feature running back. In 2017, LeGarrette Blount, Jay Ajayi and Corey Clement helped the team win 13 games by combining for 1,495 yards rushing. 

Ajayi had 73 yards in the NFC Championship Game and Blount had 90 yards in the Super Bowl. For obvious reasons, the Eagles prefer to rotate their backs. Why wouldn’t they?