INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Colts may not have gotten off to a strong start to the 2022 season, but their star running back picked up where he left off in 2021.
Jonathan Taylor was named the FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week on Wednesday. It's the sixth time he's earned the honor in his career, which is based on a fan vote each week during the regular season.
He won the award four times last season and was named the FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Year after the season.
According to the Colts, Peyton Manning holds the franchise record with seven FedEx player of the week awards between 2003 and 2009.
Taylor ran for 161 yards and a touchdown on 31 carries in the Colts' 20-20 tie in Houston in the season opener Sunday. He ran for 70 yards in the fourth quarter as Indianapolis came back from a 17-point deficit to force overtime against the Texans.
Only New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley ran for more yards than Taylor in the season opener. Barkley ran for 164 yards in New York's win over the Tennessee Titans.
Cleveland's Nick Chubb and Detroit's DeAndre Swift were the other two running backs nominated for the award in Week 1.
Each week of the season, FedEx and the Thurgood Marshall College fund will donate $2,000 to support need-based scholarship funds at historically Black colleges and universities in the United States in the name of both the FedEx Air and Ground players of the week.