Jonathan Taylor was not worth the Colts’ asking price

Reports say Indianapolis wanted a Christian McCaffrey-type package for Jonathan Taylor, and the morning show agrees the Broncos were right to walk away.

For weeks before Tuesday’s trade deadline, Jonathan Taylor was the most talked-about name in Broncos Country. The Colts running back was reportedly available, and Denver’s backfield needed help. The early rumor was that Indianapolis wanted a first-round pick.

The deadline passed, and Taylor is still a Colt. Denver traded for Chargers linebacker Daiyen Henley instead, but the trade fell through late Wednesday evening. No other team landed Taylor either. After the deadline, reports said the Colts’ asking price was much higher than one first-round pick. They wanted something like the package Carolina got for Christian McCaffrey.

On a recent edition of “Stokley and Evans, with Mark Schlereth” on 104.3 The Fan, Mike Evans said that report changes the conversation.

“If the reports are true, it wasn’t just simply give up a first-round pick. It was give up second, third, fourth, basically the whole guts of your draft, to go get Jonathan Taylor,” Evans said.

The McCaffrey trade is a well-known example. On October 20, 2022, Carolina sent McCaffrey to San Francisco for a 2023 second-round pick, a 2023 third-round pick, a 2023 fourth-round pick and a 2024 fifth-round pick. That’s four picks, three of them in a single draft. It worked out well for the 49ers, but they were paying for one of the most versatile offensive players in the league.

Evans then put the question to Broncos fans who were upset that Denver didn’t push harder.

“Does that change anything in your minds? And I guess I’d ask Bronco fans who are upset that they didn’t make a more aggressive play for Jonathan Taylor. Would you have liked to have seen them give up a Christian McCaffrey type package to go get Jonathan Taylor?” Evans asked.

Brandon Stokley didn’t hesitate.

“No. I wouldn’t have wanted to do that,” Stokley said.

Evans repeated the details of the McCaffrey deal.

“For the record it was 2023 second, 2023 third, 2023 fourth, 2024 fifth,” Evans said.

Stokley explained what that would have meant for Denver.

“Yeah, so would I have wanted to do that? No, absolutely not. This year’s draft we’re not gonna have a second rounder, third rounder, or a fourth rounder. No,” Stokley said.

That’s a big cost for a team built the way Denver is. The Broncos are 7-2 and leading the AFC West largely because of players they drafted and developed. Bo Nix is on a rookie contract. Jonah Coleman, a fourth-round pick, leads the backfield. Pat Bryant has become a regular target in the passing game. Middle-round picks have filled a lot of this roster, and those cheap contracts are part of why the team can afford its stars. Giving up a full year of Day 2 and early Day 3 picks would have hurt Denver’s ability to keep doing that, especially with Nix’s next contract coming.

Stokley said one first-round pick would have been a different story.

“I’d rather just give up the first rounder and keep all the rest of ’em,” Stokley said.

That fits the argument Josh Dover made before the deadline. If Denver wins the Super Bowl, its first-round pick is 32nd overall, which is close to a second-rounder anyway. One late first is a cost a contender can absorb. A second, third, fourth and fifth together is a much bigger hit.

Taylor would have helped. The running game still hasn’t been consistent, J.K. Dobbins has struggled and RJ Harvey is on injured reserve. But Indianapolis set its price, and no team in the league decided Taylor was worth it.

The Broncos will go into the second half with Coleman leading the backfield. Stokley and Evans think keeping those picks was the better long-term decision.

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