INDIANAPOLIS – The Indianapolis Colts went international.
Jonathan Taylor went off.
“Look,’’ said Zaire Franklin. “I’ll scream it from the mountaintops.
“He’s the MVP in my book.’’
“It’s phenomenal the way he’s been running,’’ added Shane Steichen.
In the NFL’s first game at Berlin’s historic Olympic Stadium on Sunday, Taylor’s brilliance carried the Colts when the rest of the offense had trouble protecting Daniel Jones and finishing drives.
He was that good.
Historically good.
Taylor earned first-class seating on the charter flight back to Indy by rushing for 244 yards and three touchdowns. His fourth game with three rushing TDs included a stopped-and-restart 83-yarder and an 8-yarder in overtime that lifted the Colts to a 31-25 victory over the Atlanta Falcons.
Olympic Stadium and the everlasting memory of the 1936 Summer Games offered a perfect backdrop for Taylor’s Herculean day. And let’s not forget Usain Bolt setting 100- and 200-meter world records at the venue in 2009.
“It was very humbling,’’ Taylor said. “This is a historic place and if you look back at the history of the guys who have achieved amazing feats here . . . it makes me feel like I’m part of that lineage.
“I’m just so appreciative. I’m humbled to just have a small piece of history here. I hope we put on a good product on the field and to be able to spread our love for the game.’’
Again, historic.
Taylor’s 83-yard TD midway through the fourth quarter was the longest rushing TD in franchise history and matched the longest run of his career. He’s the only Colt with multiple 80-yard runs (three total) and two have come in the last three games.
On second-and-2, Taylor looked for room up the middle, found nothing and bounced the play outside to the left. He stiff-armed cornerback A.J. Terrell Jr. at the edge and did a nice Jesse Owens/Usain Bolt impersonation while sprinting down the left sideline.
“I just know my guys on the edge (Michael Pittman Jr. and Alec Pierce), when I bounce to the outside, there’s no lack of trust,’’ Taylor said. “It’s just hit the edge full speed because I know once they see me spring to the outside, they’re going to turn around, find some work.
“When you have that type of trust with the guys on the edge, you get those special runs like that.’’
Taylor’s latest long-distance run was the 65th rushing TD of his career, surpassing Edgerrin James’ franchise record.
Taylor appreciated surpassing a career record for a team teeming with Hall of Fame running backs.
“You just think about guys we’ve had in this organization beforehand,’’ he said. “To be named amongst those legends, it means a lot.’’
Taylor applied the appropriate exclamation point with his game-winning 8-yarder. He again relied on patience, avoided James Pearce Jr. in the backfield and found a gaping hole as the offensive line sealed things to the left and rookie tight end Tyler Warren eliminated Keith Taylor. Taylor’s sharp cut inside left safety Jessie Bates III flat-footed.
In short order, Taylor was the eye of a building storm of Colts players in the end zone. They converged on him, many going through the motion of placing a crown on his helmet.
“You remember not even the run,’’ Taylor said. “You remember your teammates embracing you after that play.
“I think that’s what I’m going to remember the most and I’m just glad I was able to do it here in Berlin.’’
Sunday was the latest opportunity for Taylor to be the catalyst for another Colts’ victory. They head into their bye with an NFL-best 8-2 record and a 2½-game lead over 5-4 Jacksonville in the AFC South.
The NFL’s 2022 rushing champion piled up the 244 yards – second-most in club history, behind his 253 as a rookie in 2020 – by blending the hard, shorter gains with chunk runs. Taylor’s day featured runs of 83, 28 and 18 yards. He also had a 24-yard reception.
On the season, Taylor has 10 runs of at least 18 yards and six of at least 28.
“Definitely doesn’t get old seeing 80-yarders, 50-yarders, 60-yarders,’’ Jones said after the game. “We’ve had a number of those this year and I can tell you for sure, it doesn’t get old.’’
The defense, which was playing without injured cornerstone DeForest Buckner, set the stage for the offense’s closing heroics by snuffing out Atlanta’s opening drive of overtime.
Franklin stopped 225-pound Tyler Allgeier for a 2-yard loss on first-and-10 at the Falcons’ 36, then pulled down Michael Penix Jr. for a 12-yard sack on third-and-12.
“I think it was just a combination of us settling in as a unit and making a decision to make a stand,’’ Franklin said.
Jones energized the Colts’ winning drive with a 23-yard completion to Warren, then put the football in Taylor’s hands.
The final five plays: Taylor rushes of 7, 1, 11, 6 and 8 yards.
“I mean, that’s him,’’ left tackle Bernhard Raimann said. “He’s the best running back in the NFL.’’
Not all pretty
The Colts head into the bye at 8-2 but have more than a few areas to clean up.
After allowing only nine sacks in the first eight games, Jones’ protection has yielded 12 in the last two, including seven by the Falcons. That’s the most since New England buried Sam Ehlinger under nine in week 9 of 2022.
At one point late in the game, Jones stood in the shotgun with a bloody mouth from a cut lip.
It spoke to the individual excellence of Taylor and Jones’ toughness that the Colts finished with a season-best 519 yards. They rushed for 323 yards with Jones adding 53 on seven carries. None was bigger than his 19-yard scramble on third-and-21 at the Indy 41 with 1:26 remaining and Atlanta protecting a 25-22 lead.
On fourth-and-2, Jones kept the must-have-it-drive alive with a 10-yard completion to Warren.
Four plays later, Michael Badgley atoned for earlier misses – a 53-yard field goal attempt that fell short and a missed PAT – with a 44-yard field goal that tied the game at 25-all and sent it into overtime.
Along with testing Jones’ durability, the Colts fumbled four times, losing one, saw Jones suffer an interception and converted just 2-of-12 third-down situations. They were 2-of-4 on fourth down.
The two failed fourth-down attempts came at the Atlanta 27 and 5.
Jones was asked what Sunday’s highs-and-lows afternoon told him about the Colts.
“We’ve got a good football team,’’ he said. “We’ve got a really good running back, that’s for sure.
“We hurt ourselves in some key spots that we can’t afford to do, and that’s on me. I’ve got to clean up those up and make sure I’m protecting the ball, make sure we’re converting in situations where we need to, especially down in the red zone.
“But the fact we were able to win anyway and to battle through a number of those situations, I think says a lot about our team, says a lot about our fight.’’
This and that
- The Colts’ returners shined. Ashton Dulin had a 50-yard kickoff return and Ameer Abdullah added a 49-yard return. Josh Downs returned a punt 24 yards.
- Warren set career highs with eight receptions and 99 yards. His 50 receptions broke Dwayne Allen’s rookie record (42) for a tight end.
- Jones finished 19-of-26 for 255 yards with a 37-yard touchdown to Alec Pierce and one interception. He joined Peyton Manning as the only Colts quarterback to pass for at least 200 yards in each of the first 10 games of a season.
- The defense limited Atlanta to 290 total yards and notched a takeaway for a 10th straight game, the NFL’s longest active streak. Safety Cam Bynum forced a fumble on a sack of Penix that linebacker Germaine Pratt recovered.
- In his first start for the Colts since last Tuesday’s trade, cornerback Sauce Gardner was credited with six tackles and one defended pass. He slipped and gave up a 2-point PAT to Drake London.
You can follow Mike Chappell on Twitter at @mchappell51.