Could Patriots Target Disgruntled Jonathan Taylor Amid Colts’ Fiasco?

The New England Patriots clearly are interested in adding a running back to pair with Rhamondre Stevenson.

If they weren’t, New England wouldn’t have hosted Ezekiel Elliott on a visit Saturday, or hosted Leonard Fournette and Darrell Henderson for workouts in recent weeks. The Patriots wouldn’t be showing interest in Dalvin Cook if they weren’t intrigued in bolstering their backfield, either.

But what if, instead of signing a free agent running back, Bill Belichick and company traded for one of the league’s best? Sure, the storyline around the league currently is the depreciation of the running back position, but Belichick has been known to zig when everyone else zags.

And Jonathan Taylor isn’t exactly a middle-of-the-road, aging running back. He’s just 24 years old and was a First Team All-Pro in 2021.

Taylor currently is in a stalemate with the Indianapolis Colts. He’s irked by the fact the Colts won’t extend him entering the final season on his rookie deal, and follow-up comments made by owner Jim Irsay haven’t sat well. It’s prompted Taylor to reportedly request a trade.

Irsay told reporters the Colts will not trade Taylor, but NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport said the expectation is teams will try to make the decision difficult on the Colts.

“I don’t get the sense anything is imminent as far as a resolution. So the real question is: Are teams going to call and make the decision challenging for the Colts?” Rapoport said Tuesday on “Inside Training Camp.”

“From my understanding, just talking to several (general managers) across the league, there is expected to be interest in Jonathan Taylor. I know a couple at least who are planning to call the Colts to gauge where they are.”

Rapoport said a trade conversation then would lead into talks about Taylor’s next contract with said team, and there are teams willing to do a “real contract” with him.

Perhaps the Patriots could be among those teams?

New England certainly is not overflowing with talent at the skill positions — well, besides Stevenson. Adding Taylor to the offense, though he likely will command a top-of-the-market running back contract, would go a long way. New England would then have the league’s best running back duo, with Stevenson under contract for the next two seasons.

One NFC scout apparently thinks the Patriots could be a “team to watch.”

“Honestly, Taylor could play anywhere,” a veteran NFC scout told FanBuzz in a story published Tuesday. “But the Patriots may be a team to watch. He’s a stud player, a stud person, can run, can catch, and he’s even really good in pass protection.”

An NFC North executive told FanBuzz he thinks a team could acquire Taylor from the Colts for a second-round pick. For what it’s worth, the Patriots have their own second-round picks in each of the next three NFL drafts.