The Colts drafted McGowan in Round 7 of the 2026 NFL Draft to compete with D.J. Giddens for the backup role behind Jonathan Taylor. Whoever wins this battle will be worth a roster spot early in the season in case something happens to Taylor. McGowan did score 12 touchdowns in his final college season, but he is also age 24 and never topped 1,000 yards rushing in a college season. In Dynasty, don't take McGowan before Round 4 in a rookie draft. Pay attention to the reports on camp battles before you choose to roster Giddens or McGowan in redraft.
Fantasy News
Colts' Seth McGowan: Gets start in final preseason contest
Rotowire
McGowan carried the ball four times for 20 yards and caught his only target for five yards in Saturday's 25-16 preseason loss to the Lions.
The seventh-round rookie got the start once again, even with DJ Giddens back in the lineup after recovering from a hamstring injury, and McGowan put together the Colts' longest run of the afternoon on a 10-yard scamper in the first quarter to help set up a field goal. Giddens scored the team's only TD of the game in the second quarter, however, as they both make their final cases to be the No. 2 backfield option behind Jonathan Taylor. The two younger backs had similar athleticism-over-production profiles in college, so they could end up trading the job back and forth during the season based on health and performance.
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Colts' Seth McGowan: Eight carries in second preseason game
Rotowire
McGowan rushed eight times for 27 yards in Saturday's 34-6 preseason loss to the Falcons.
McGowan started for the second time in as many preseason games, but the rookie seventh-round pick didn't find much running room in the lopsided loss. DJ Giddens is working his way back from a hamstring injury, and the 2025 fifth-round pick represents McGowan's main competition for the backup role behind workhorse Jonathan Taylor. The Colts will wrap up preseason play next Saturday against the Lions.
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Colts' Seth McGowan: Taken by Indianapolis
Rotowire
The Colts selected McGowan in the seventh round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 237th overall.
McGowan had a tumultuous college career, which saw him dismissed from Oklahoma's program after being arrested in April of 2021. He didn't see the field again until 2024 with New Mexico State and ended his college career with Kentucky in 2025, when he turned 165 carries into 725 yards and 12 touchdowns along with 19 catches for 126 yards over 11 games. McGowan has good size with a 6-foot, 223-pound frame, and he has the flexibility and strength to move around defenders, though he's not as explosive as other backfield prospects. There will be questions around his character heading into his NFL rookie season, but he'll have the opportunity to prove himself in Indianapolis, where he'll compete against DJ Giddens and Ulysses Bentley for rotational snaps behind lead back Jonathan Taylor.
