The Colts are selling, and Jonathan Taylor could be next. Houston is the surprise fit: David Montgomery is week-to-week, and no Texans back has more than 45.6% of the carries. Denver and the Giants are the obvious buyers. For Week 9, Taylor is still a Colt and still in your lineup.
All points here are full PPR.
Update, Nov 7, 2026: Indianapolis traded Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner. What Weeks 1-8 usage says about Jonathan Taylor, Daniel Jones and Josh Downs against Dallas. Follow-up: NFL Week 9 Colts Fire Sale: Taylor, Jones and Downs Before the Deadline.
Why Taylor is on the block
Indianapolis lost 42-7 in Week 8 and has started selling. Guard Quenton Nelson went to Seattle. DeForest Buckner was traded too. Reports this week openly questioned whether Taylor stays. The deadline is Nov 10 at 4 pm ET.
The workload is still elite on paper. Taylor has a 66.1% carry share through Week 8, the highest in this piece, and 18.0 points per game. That sits right with James Cook, Kyren Williams and D'Andre Swift at 18.8.
The trend is the problem. Week 8 was 8 carries, a 30.8% carry share, 62.0% of snaps and 6.7 points. That was his lowest score in 28 straight non-Week 18 games.
- Weeks 1 and 2: 95.0% and 75.0% of the carries, 25.1 and 29.2 points.
- He has not topped 70.0% since Week 3.
- Week 7 fell to 54.5%, then Week 8 cratered in a blowout.
A new team with a real hole would fix that. Here are three.
The surprise: Houston
The Texans play the Colts twice a year. A trade inside the division is the unusual part. The football fit is not.
- David Montgomery: 43.9% carry share and 9.1 points per game in 5 games. He hurt his groin in Week 5, has missed at least three games, is out against the Chargers and is week-to-week.
- Woody Marks: 77 carries, a 45.6% carry share and 8.9 points per game across 7 games, on 62.0% of snaps.
- Jawhar Jordan: one game, a 24.0% carry share and 12.0 points.
No Houston back is doing more than splitting work, and none is above 9.1 points per game over a real sample. Houston is already buying: it added Marvin Harrison Jr. this month. Taylor would take a split backfield and make it his. History tells us the Texans are known for taking veteran RBs when the need arises.
Fantasy effect: Marks is a Week 9 start with Montgomery out. If Taylor lands in Houston, Marks drops to a bench stash and Montgomery loses his path back to a lead role.
Obvious need: Denver
Denver has a rookie carrying the load and a veteran who isn't producing.
- J.K. Dobbins: 94 carries and a 47.9% carry share, but just 7.4 points per game on 38.0% of snaps.
- Jonah Coleman: 14.7 points per game in 3 games, with an 11.8% target share. He has led the backfield in snaps, carries and touches for two straight weeks, including 68% of snaps and 20.4 points in Week 8.
- RJ Harvey: the pass-game back, with a 15.5% target share and a 17.2% carry share.
Coleman looks like the lead back unless Denver trades for one before the deadline. That is the risk for anyone who just picked him up. Taylor in Denver would push Coleman back into a share and make Dobbins hard to roster.
Obvious need: the Giants
The Giants lead the NFC East at 4-2-1 and just traded for QB J.J. McCarthy. They are acting like a buyer.
- Cam Skattebo: 98 carries, a 54.5% carry share and 11.7 points per game in 6 games. He has a hamstring injury from Week 7, missed practice Wednesday and Thursday, and is not expected to play Sunday at Philadelphia.
- Devin Singletary: 16.3% carry share and 8.4 points per game in 4 games. He is expected to take a bigger role this week, and the Giants may call up Eric Gray.
- Najee Harris: a 23.3% carry share but 2.3 points per game.
- Tyrone Tracy Jr.: 11.7% of the carries, 5.3 points per game.
Behind Skattebo, nobody here is above 8.4 points per game. Taylor would be a clean lead back on a first-place team.
| Player | Team | Games | Carries | Carry share | Target share | Points per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woody Marks | HOU | 7 | 77 | 45.6% | 6.8% | 8.9 |
| David Montgomery | HOU | 5 | 52 | 43.9% | 4.0% | 9.1 |
| Jawhar Jordan | HOU | 1 | 6 | 24.0% | 3.1% | 12.0 |
| J.K. Dobbins | DEN | 8 | 94 | 47.9% | 4.2% | 7.4 |
| Jonah Coleman | DEN | 3 | 30 | 39.4% | 11.8% | 14.7 |
| RJ Harvey | DEN | 6 | 24 | 17.2% | 15.5% | 11.2 |
| Cam Skattebo | NYG | 6 | 98 | 54.5% | 7.4% | 11.7 |
| Najee Harris | NYG | 5 | 31 | 23.3% | 0.4% | 2.3 |
| Devin Singletary | NYG | 4 | 18 | 16.3% | 7.6% | 8.4 |
| Tyrone Tracy Jr. | NYG | 6 | 19 | 11.7% | 2.8% | 5.3 |
What to do this week
- Taylor: start him against Dallas. He is still a Colt in Week 9, and his 18.0 points per game outweighs one blowout.
- Woody Marks: start as a flex with Montgomery out. Know that a Taylor trade to Houston caps him.
- Devin Singletary: a Week 9 pickup and flex with Skattebo expected out.
- Jonah Coleman: hold and start. Watch Nov 10. A Denver trade is his biggest threat.
- J.K. Dobbins: bench. The carries have not turned into points.
For more Week 9 role changes, see NFL Week 9 usage risers and fallers.
How this was computed
Game stats cover Weeks 1 to 8 of the 2026 season. Carry share is a player's share of his team's carries in the games he played, with quarterback runs counted in the team total. Target share is the same idea for targets. Season carry shares and points are per-game averages over games played, so a player with one or three games has a small sample. Points are full PPR. The league-wide comparisons use running backs with at least five games. Left out: trade terms, contracts, prior seasons and any Week 9 games already played.
