INDIANAPOLIS — The future is all about quarterback Anthony Richardson, which is good considering the present continues to be marred by erratic passes and questionable, costly mistakes. The here-and-now for the Indianapolis Colts is all about running back Jonathan Taylor. At least it should be. He’s unquestionably the best player on the roster, and that best player did what best players are required to do Sunday afternoon at Lucas Oil Stadium. Taylor was the catalyst for a 21-16 victory over the Chicago Bears, and the outcome carried monumental significance. “We’re a 1-2 team,’’ center Ryan Kelly said, “but 1-2 is a helluva lot better than 0-3.’’ Over the past quarter-century, only one team opened a season 0-3, regrouped and reached the playoffs. The outlier — the 2018 Houston Texans. Credit Taylor and a defense that atoned for two miserable outings at the expense of Chicago’s No. 31-ranked offense and rookie quarterback Caleb Williams. “Defense played their tails off,’’ Colts coach Shane Steichen said. After the Bears closed to within 5 with 2:01 remaining, the Colts turned to their closer — Taylor — to, you know, close it. He opened with a 4-yard gain ahead of the 2-minute warning, then sliced free for 13 that ended any hopes for a Chicago comeback after it exhausted its allotment of timeouts. The final three snaps: Richardson taking a knee from the victory formation. “That’s how you want to win every game,’’ Kelly said. And leaning on Taylor gives the Colts the best opportunity every game. Michael Pittman Jr. has witnessed Taylor’s influence from the very beginning. The Colts selected Pittman with the 34th overall pick in 2020. They grabbed Taylor seven slots later. Pittman understands what’s possible with Taylor. “JT is really like our X-factor,’’ he said. “If we’ve got to run the ball to win games, that’s the name of the game.’’ Taylor finished with 110 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries. It was the first time since weeks 16-17 of 2021 he cracked the 100-yard barrier in consecutive games. “I’m not surprised,’’ Pittman said. “Whenever you have JT, it’s hard to just not force-feed him the ball.’’ Added guard Quenton Nelson: “He’s such a special player, such a special human being in general. When he gets the ball in his hands, there’s always a chance of it being a home run. “It’s a pleasure being able to block for him.’’ The Taylor-centric run game finished with 150 yards. Richardson stressed the Bears with eight attempts for 24 yards and Trey Sermon added 16 on two attempts, including a 1-yard TD assisted by an authoritative push from behind by Richardson, Bernard Raimann, Drew Ogletree, Pittman and a few others. Taylor gave the Colts a 7-0 lead with a 29-yard run in the first quarter that mixed his unique skills — patience at the hole, a nifty jump-cut to his right to avoid blitzing Kevin Byard III and acceleration — with some on-the-run advice, literally, from Richardson. “Man, he’s a beast,’’ Richardson said, “but that’s also about communication with myself as well. I told him the nickel was coming. So, he jump-cut inside real quick and made a decision and just ran.’’ “Mid-play,’’ Taylor said of Richardson’s warning, adding he received similar alerts from Philip Rivers and Matt Ryan. “It’s something special between a quarterback and a running back.’’ It’s not as if Indy didn’t flirt with its third 0-3 start in 14 seasons. There were two more Richardson interceptions —that’s five in the last two games, upping his league-high total to six — and at least three passes he sailed over open receivers. He completed just 10-of-20 for 167 yards and a 39.0 rating, the worst in his seven starts. “It’s always frustrating when I’m missing,’’ Richardson said. “And pointing to the other team, I’m hitting them in the chest and it’s like, ‘Bro, you’re throwing to the wrong person.’ “I’ve just got to do better, man. I’m going to do better. I’m going to clean it up for the team.’’ Does Richardson feel as if he’s pressing? “Not necessarily pressing, but it’s like, ‘Oh my god, it’s wide open. Let me give him the ball,’’’ he said. “And I just get too excited and I just miss him. “So, I’ve just got to let it spin and give him the ball.’’ The explosive plays aren’t the issue for the Richardson-led offense, which finished with 306 yards on 54 plays. Five plays chewed up 159 yards: a 44-yard completion to Alec Pierce, a 40-yarder to Kylen Granson, Taylor’s 25-yard catch-and-run with a screen and 29 and 21-yard runs by Taylor. But the other 49 snaps resulted in 147 yards. The Colts were 3-of-13 on third and fourth downs and are 12-of-36 in those situations after three games. “JT is running it good,’’ Steichen said. “I think we went for 150 on the ground today. But we’ve got to sustain drives and it starts with myself.’’ The Colts also were nearly damaged by a questionable roughing the punter penalty against Tyler Goodson in the third quarter. With rookie Tory Taylor standing in his end zone, Goodson got penetration, stretched out for the football and contacted Taylor. Steichen was livid with the penalty and challenged the ruling, but it was upheld after a review. Steichen was asked if he believed Goodson got a hand/finger on the punt. “Yes,’’ he said with a stern look. The most tangible sign Goodson got a finger on the football? He suffered a sprained right ring finger on the play that required a post-game meeting with the medical staff. While Taylor was dictating things on offense, the defense used the visiting Bears as a get-better opportunity. They sacked Williams four times, had seven tackles for loss, came up with three takeaways, limited the Bears’ No. 32-ranked run game to 63 yards on 28 attempts (2.3 yards per carry) and mounted a goal-line stand late in the second quarter with the Colts protecting a 7-0 lead. Cornerback Jaylon Jones had his first two career interceptions, including one on the play following the roughing-the-punter flag. And rookie end Laiatu Latu’s first career sack included a strip/fumble that defensive lineman Grover Stewart recovered. Four plays later, Taylor’s 1-yard TD pushed the Colts in front, 21-9. It was a much-needed feel-better afternoon that kept Indy’s season from spiraling out of control. “For sure,’’ linebacker Zaire Franklin said. “When you start off 0-2, there’s not a lot of smiles going around. The reality of that situation is that we have a lot of games to go. Never too high. Never too low. “We’ve got to treat both defeat and victory the same and we’ve got to learn from it. But it definitely feels good to be on the right side of the game.’’ You can follow Mike Chappell on Twitter/X at @mchappell51.