The former England Under-21 skipper has been plagued with injuries in recent seasons, and with Brazilian defender Douglas tipped to be the next player through the door, Taylor's future is up in the air.
Although born in Greenwich in London, Taylor was raised on Tyneside and is as Geordie as Alan Shearer or Lee Clark, and has been part of the fixtures and fittings at St James' Park his entire career.
But, despite his obvious ability, he has missed more games than he has played in recent times.
And Alan Pardew has his sights on a central partnership of Fabricio Coloccini and Douglas ... with Mike Williamson picking up the scraps.
Taylor is injured again, and has not featured in the two pre-season friendlies.