Fantasy Football: Can Raheem Mostert, Rashaad Penny, James Cook or Roschon Johnson Replace Jonathan Taylor?
Jonathan Taylor has been given permission to seek a trade by the Indianapolis Colts. These are some potential backs they could add in a trade and how it would impact the fantasy football landscape.
We already covered what the current Indianapolis Colts' backfield might look like if they were to trade Jonathan Taylor. However, while we know they are asking for draft compensation in return for the former All-Pro rusher, what if they could also acquire a running back to replace JT? Whoever they get obviously wouldn't be quite on his level, nevertheless, there are options out there that would be much better than the team being left with the likes of Zack Moss, Jake Funk, Deon Jackson, Evan Hull and Kenyan Drake. These four guys should be their best and most realistic targets.
Possible Jonathan Taylor Trade Targets
Raheem Mostert, Miami Dolphins
This wouldn't be the best-case scenario for the Colts, however, with Miami being one of the favorites to trade for Taylor, they bear mentioning here. Mostert would be a temporary fix who could bring similar explosiveness to the offense that JT does. He's averaged a ridiculous 5.4 yards per carry for his career and is one of the fastest backs in the league. The concern is he's 31 years old and has a lengthy injury history, so his ceiling is probably about 200 carries for a season. Still, he's a massive upgrade over the rest of the duds currently occupying the Colts' running back room.
Fantasy Impact
If this trade were to go down, it would do wonders for both players' values. Taylor could step into an elite offense and be the assumed feature back. Mostert would also be the immediate favorite for the RB1 job in Indy. Currently, he is stuck in a full-blown committee in Miami.
Rashaad Penny, Philadelphia Eagles
There have already been rumors that Penny could be cut from a crowded Philadelphia backfield, but his numbers when healthy have been gaudy enough that they could entice Indy to make a deal with Philly and require a bit less draft capital. Penny is another guy with a horrifying injury history, nevertheless, the Colts will have to make do with what they can get in a less-than-ideal situation. Penny would also be useless to Philly with Taylor there, so throwing him in the deal should be a non-issue on their side. While Penny is impossible to trust from a health standpoint, he has averaged 6.3 and 6.1 yards per carry over the last two seasons with a 5.7 average over his career. It's not a huge sample size, but impressive nonetheless.
Fantasy Impact
If this were to go down, Penny's ADP would skyrocket. Fantasy managers would see the upside with him as a true RB1, and his ADP would climb multiple rounds. Taylor, I'm not so sure about. It would be great to see him on a great offense behind an elite offense line. Still, Philly loves to use a committee, and Jalen Hurts doesn't do his running backs any favors in the passing game or near the red zone.
Roschon Johnson, Chicago Bears
The Bears are a popular landing spot for Tayor, and this would be an interesting move. With a rookie quarterback taking over this year, perhaps the Colts prefer to go young and add a rookie. Johnson was excellent in college and has impressed so far this summer. The Bears also have the cap flexibility to give Taylor the contract he covets, which can't necessarily be said for any other team on this list. With Taylor locked up for multiple years and Khalil Herbert on the roster as a backup, it wouldn't be a tough decision for Chicago to move on from the rookie, even if he is talented.
Fantasy Impact
This is another deal that would do wonders for the value of both players. Johnson would get a real shot to be an immediate RB1 as a rookie, which is something that he's not going to get in Chicago. If the Colts were to target him and move on from Taylor, the assumption would be that they are ready to turn the backfield over to him. For Taylor, he would be landing on an up-and-coming offense that may run the ball more than any team in the league this season. My money would be on the Bears and Falcons to be the top two teams in rushing attempts this season. The Chicago offensive line is a bit scary, but Taylor's likely volume would make up for it.
James Cook, Buffalo Bills
Lastly, we are going with a blockbuster deal that would break the internet. If the Bills were to pull the trigger on a deal for JT to go all in on a championship this year and ship Twitter darling James Cook to Indy, it would be the most exciting deal out there. This would be crazy for both real life and fantasy. It's not out of the realm of pssibility, however, it would be a massive risk for the Bills, who would likely have to give up a whole lot for a one-year rental.
Fantasy Impact
Taylor would immediately rocket back into the first round. The prospect of JT, Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs on the same offense would be too juicy for fantasy drafters to resist. He would be the RB1 fantasy owners have been dying for the Bills to get for years now. On the other hand, Cook would see his value dip a bit. He's already the presumed RB1 in Buffalo, and drafters are gaining more and more confidence in him with each passing day. So, if he were to be shipped off from an elite offense to a potentially bad offense, it would definitely scare a lot of managers off of him.
