Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor is undoubtedly one of the best of his position in the NFL.

Not only did the 3rd-year player out of Wisconsin lead the league in rushing yards by a wide margin in 2021, but his total attempts, 332, were tops in the NFL.

That’s opened up a discussion into how Taylor will be utilized in 2022, especially with Matt Ryan now with the team and the Colts looking to lean on their passing game to a greater extent.

“You don’t see teams that have this ground-and-pound run game win championships. You just don’t,” head coach Frank Reich said, according to ESPN. “I’m sure it’s happened with one or two teams, but our best formula is to be balanced. I’m not saying he won’t lead the league in touches, because you never know how things are going to play out. But I almost don’t want him to.”

Reich and his staff want to ensure that they don’t wear Taylor down prematurely. Continuing to rely on the 23-year-old too heavily could risk his long-term health and well-being.

“Even though he’s having success in that game and we are feeding him, we have to be responsible enough to understand that there is a bigger picture beyond that one game—that we’ve got a full season, we’ve got a full career for him. So, we’ve got to be disciplined,” said offensive coordinator Marcus Brady.

Part of that is keeping Taylor out of preseason games, meaning Nyheim Hines will be called on instead. Come the regular season, though, Taylor will be the primary option out of the backfield, and it will be interesting to see how the comments of Reich and the Colts staff play out.