Will Marlon Mack get ‘inherent respect’ as starting RB?

Who will get the leg up in the backfield?

The Indianapolis Colts have a backfield filled with talent and will go through the 2020 season trying to figure out the best way to divide the touches between Marlon Mack and the rest of the room.

After the Colts drafted Jonathan Taylor in the second round, the team has been saying it will be a 1a, 1b situation at the top of the depth chart. But will Mack get the first crack at leading the way given what he’s done over the last two seasons?

“There’s definitely inherent respect for the starting returner in my mind. That’s the way that I see this,” said Frank Reich on Monday. “When I said it, or if I didn’t say it, I heard someone else say it and I thought it was a good phrase so I was taking ownership of it. That it was not the one-two punch but the one-one punch. I’d like to think I coined that phrase when I was talking about Marlon (Mack) and Jonathan (Taylor). I probably didn’t, but in my own mind I did. I see it as a one-one (punch) and I see that on many fronts.”

It will be interesting to see how the shares are split between Mack and Taylor in the backfield. Mack has been efficient in his work as the starter while Taylor brings a type of strength and explosiveness that has been lacking in the room for a while.

We won’t truly know how the Colts will divide the work in the backfield, but there’s at least a chance Mack gets to lead the way at the beginning of the season.