Jonathan Taylor Is 78 Yards From NFL History — Commanders Can Stop Him

The Colts star enters Sunday within reach of an international rushing record, but Washington's run defense has been one of the NFL's toughest through three weeks.

Sep 27, 2026; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor (28) rushes the ball against the Houston Texans in the first half at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

If the Washington Commanders didn't already have enough to worry about with Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor on Sunday in London, here's more. Taylor needs just 78 rushing yards to pass Travis Etienne Jr. and become the all-time leading NFL rusher in international games. He'll enter the Washington game with 258 rushing yards on 66 carries through three games, averaging 3.9 yards per carry, with four rushing touchdowns.

Taylor put himself in a position to break the record by rushing for 244 yards against the Atlanta Falcons in Berlin, Germany, last season. He finished that game with 286 yards from scrimmage, according to NFL Research; both were single-game international records.

JONATHAN TAYLOR 83-YARD TD RUN 😱🔥

O.M.G. 🤯

(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/JS2Tfg28bN

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 9, 2025

Commanders Have the Run Defense to Make Taylor Wait

This is where the rubber meets the road as the Commanders enter this game having allowed only 246 rushing yards through three games, which is the third-fewest in the NFL. The team allows only 82 rushing yards a game with a 25% run-stuff rate that leads the league. For everything Washington's defense has struggled with, stopping the run hasn't been one of those things, although Taylor needs four fewer yards than the team gives up per game, so this might be hard to prevent.

On another note, Taylor hasn't exactly been lighting things on fire this year. He has yet to rush for 100 yards in a game, and he's coming off a season-low 68-yard performance against Houston. But 78 yards is very attainable, meaning Washington definitely has its work cut out for it to keep him away from the record. Which, to be clear, the Commanders probably don't know or care much about, as they're focused on getting the win and containing Taylor. They'd just rather not be the team that gives him his first 100-yard rushing day of the season in the process.

The Colts could lean on Taylor even more, especially with their receiver room dealing with injuries. He only needs 78 yards to leave London with another NFL record. If Washington's run defense looks anything like it has through three weeks, the Commanders have a legitimate chance to make him wait. If they can keep him below that number, there's a good chance they also did their job against one of the biggest parts of the Colts' offense.

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