Colts senior offensive assistant Press Taylor has been coaching Carson Wentz since the quarterback entered the league in 2016. That partnership will continue in Indianapolis in 2021 after Philadelphia sent its former No. 2 overall pick to the club.
Taylor was Philadelphia’s assistant quarterbacks coach from 2016-2017 and the quarterbacks coach from 2018-2020, so he has witnessed all of Wentz’s NFL highs and lows. And Taylor told Indianapolis media on Tuesday that when head coach Frank Reich asked about the quarterback prior to the trade, he delivered a strong endorsement.
“That was a no-brainer for me,” Taylor said, via JJ Stankevitz of the Colts’ website. “I absolutely believe in Carson Wentz as a player.”
But what went wrong in 2020? Taylor said it was a variety of issues.
“We didn’t do anything well as an offense, as a team,” Taylor said. “You win four games, there’s a lot to look back and say things didn’t go well for us. Certainly everything around him didn’t go well and I think he would tell you he didn’t play his best last season.
“The four years before that you saw what he’s capable of as a quarterback. You saw overcoming adversity, you saw when he had talented players around him, when maybe the pieces were lesser than at times, and the way he could play and elevate those around him.”
Reich set out a similar sentiment recently, saying the quarterback’s 2019 film confirmed to him Wentz “still has it.”
In 12 games last year, Wentz completed 57.4 percent of his passes for 2,620 yards with 16 touchdowns and a league-leading 15 interceptions. He was also sacked a league-high 50 times.
Taylor and Reich were two significant reasons why Wentz wanted to head to Indianapolis in the first place. Wentz will have to reward the confidence both have shown in him with much better performances in 2021 and beyond.
