Colts running back Jonathan Taylor will return to training camp this week, coach Steve Steichen reiterated Sunday.
“He should be back this week,” Steichen said, via Stephen Holder of ESPN. “Do I know the exact date he’ll be back? No, but he should be back.”
That does not mean Taylor will practice.
He remains on active/physically unable to perform with the ankle injury that cut short his 2022 season. He has spent the past week rehabbing out of state.
Taylor has communicated to the team that he will return to the field only when 100 percent healthy, Holder reports. The 2021 All-Pro wants to avoid the recurring ankle issues he had last season.
Holder adds that Taylor still wants the Colts to trade him, a request the running back made early in training camp when the team declined to engage in contract talks. Owner Jim Irsay publicly has said the Colts won’t trade Taylor.
The Colts had five running backs rush for 79 yards on 27 carries (2.9 yards per attempt) in the first preseason game against Buffalo. Deon Jackson was the leading rusher with six carries for 35 yards.
Taylor, 24, has 3,841 rushing yards and 33 rushing touchdowns since entering the league in 2020.