Jonathan Taylor 'hopeful' for extension with Indianapolis Colts

Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor is hoping for an extension this offseason with the club that drafted him in the second round three seasons ago. He doesn’t have a fifth-year option on his contract, which means unless the Colts buck up for the extension, he could hit free agency for the first time next offseason.

Taylor opened up to the media on Wednesday about how extension discussions are going so far.

“Colts RB Jonathan Taylor says he and the Colts have had some recent contract talks and he’s hopeful for an extension before the season,” ESPN’s Stephen Holder reported. “But he also pointed out that he’s seen some disappointing developments with other RB contracts and is very aware of the realities.”

“Hopefully they can see the value,” Taylor said, via Holder.

The 2022 season was Taylor’s first in the league with fewer than 1,000 rushing yards. He could only play in 11 games and underwent surgery after the season for an injured right ankle. There’s a chance the Colts want to see how the running back bounces back before adding years to his contract.

The latest trend in the NFL for running backs isn’t very reassuring. For whatever reason, league teams aren’t investing as heavily in tailbacks, especially beyond their first contract. Several quality running backs were released this offseason to spare salary cap room. Dalvin Cook and Ezekiel Elliott are still on the open market.

Two of the league’s best backs — Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs — are skipping mandatory minicamp because they don’t want to sign their franchise tags with 2023 salaries around $10.09 million.

Steelers’ Najee Harris concerned about NFL’s RB treatment

Najee Harris is a year away from needing to worry about negotiations for a second contract. But the young Steeler star is concerned about what he sees with his chosen position in the NFL.

“To see people like that get released, especially at my position, it’s like, damn, what did they do?” Najee Harris told reporters during a Tuesday media availability. “Is it because of their age? You know what I mean? Dalvin Cook is coming off of multiple 1,000-yard seasons. What? I don’t know. Is it money from the team? They got to pay somebody? I don’t know. But it’s eye-opening, for sure.”

Still, Najee Harris is all in on his support for the position. The Steelers selected him in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. He’s paid them back with consecutive 1,000-yard seasons.

“The position is an art to me,” Najee Harris said. “I’ll always love the position. You could do so much. It’s almost as if you’re a queen in chess. You could do a lot of things: Line up out wide, run the ball, protection. [You] could be implemented in the offense so much. For them to say a position is not as valued, it’s kind of crazy.”

On3’s Suzanne Halliburton contributed to this report.