The Indianapolis Colts are a mess right now. They just blew a two-score lead at home to the winless Titans in Week 6 to fall to 2-4 on the year and then fired GM Chris Ballard shortly after that. Given how things are going, there's a good chance the Colts will look to make major trades ahead of the Nov. 10 trade deadline.

Their goal in those trades should be to accumulate as much draft capital as possible. I'm not sure anyone who would realistically can net the Colts as much as Jonathan Taylor, one of the best running backs in the NFL who is signed through 2028. If the Colts decide to explore trade offers for Taylor, here's what they could be looking at from three teams that should be interested.

The Vikings should go all-in by trading for Jonathan Taylor

The Minnesota Vikings are 5-0, but their offense, which ranks 22nd in the NFL with 21.8 points per game, is far from stellar. Some of that has to do with some shaky quarterback play, but the skill-position talent, beyond Justin Jefferson, isn't great either. Taylor would give the Vikings a second elite skill-position player, making their offense really difficult to contain.

In order to make this dream into a reality, though, the Vikings would need to part with a lot, and we have them doing just that, parting with something similar to what the 49ers did to acquire Christian McCaffrey. Giving up a pair of day-two picks and Jordan Mason might seem like a ton, and I'm not going to minimize it, but in this deal, Minnesota would hold onto its first-round pick and already has an extra third-rounder and two extra sixth-rounders, so they have enough capital to be willing to make this deal.

From the Colts' perspective, sure, they aren't landing a first-rounder, but getting a pair of day-two picks (including what could be an early third-rounder from the Eagles) and Jordan Mason, whom they can either flip for something at the deadline or extend, isn't bad by any means. The Colts are trending in the wrong direction and are unlikely to win while Taylor, a 27-year-old running back, is at the peak of his powers. Selling him now, when they can get a premium pick package like this, makes sense.

The Texans will need to pay a steep price to pry Jonathan Taylor out of Indianapolis

The Houston Texans traded for and extended David Montgomery, hoping he'd form a dynamic one-two punch in their backfield alongside Woody Marks, whom the Texans used a fourth-round pick on in the 2025 NFL Draft. This has not worked out at all, though, as Montgomery has been banged up and has averaged just 2.7 yards per carry on his 52 rushing attempts. Marks has been better, but not by much. Overall, the Texans are 25th in the NFL with an average of 84.8 rushing yards per game as a team. Taylor, on his own, has averaged 82 yards per game.

The Texans' offense has been surprisingly potent despite their 2-4 record, so imagine what a formidable running game would do to it. There's one problem, though — why would the Colts want to help their AFC South rivals? To put it simply, they wouldn't, unless they were getting such a good deal in return. This could very well be that.

Getting a first-round pick from a Texans team that is 2-4 and a young running back who could very well be Taylor's long-term replacement in Marks sounds pretty good for Indianapolis. While giving up a first-rounder might be steep from Houston's point of view, this is their window to compete. They've shown signs of rebounding after their poor start, much like last year, and Taylor could help catapult them into contention. You have to give talent, especially to get elite talent from within the division. In this case, parting with a first and Marks might be worthwhile.

Jonathan Taylor would give the Broncos' running game a needed boost

The Denver Broncos are 4-2, but that's in spite of their offense, which has averaged just 19 points per game thus far. No, Bo Nix has not played well, but having a lackluster rushing attack, which currently ranks just behind Houston in yards per game (84.2) has a lot to do with that. Acquiring Taylor would fix that rushing attack in a big way.

Of course, it'd require Denver to part with a lot, though, headlined by a first-round pick. That could be a non-starter, but from the Broncos' perspective, it'll be a late pick, they'd receive an additional fourth-round pick, and they'd receive some cap relief by sending J.K. Dobbins to Indianapolis. Trading a late first-rounder for a game-changer at a position of need makes all the sense in the world for a true contender.

As for the Colts, sure, they probably don't want Dobbins, who is under contract through 2027, and trading a player of Taylor's caliber is never fun, but what's the point of keeping him? Trading him now for a first-round pick, especially in a year in which they don't have a first-rounder, feels like an offer that's too good to pass on.