At the height of his powers, Joe Mixon was one of the better running backs in the NFL and a key reason why the Cincinnati Bengals reached Super Bowl LVI.
Now, Mixon has a new home after being traded to the Houston Texans. Unfortunately for the 27-year-old, his start in Houston hasn’t gotten off to the kind of start he wanted.
Why Isn’t Joe Mixon Practicing?
Since the Texans opened up training camp, the Pro Bowl running back has missed the last three practices with undisclosed injuries. Speaking to reporters on Monday, Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans gave an update on his injury.
“Joe will be fine. He’ll miss a little bit of time, but he’ll be fine,” Ryans explained. “He’s the toughest competitor we have, so I’m not worried about him.”
#Texans HC DeMeco Ryans said Joe Mixon may miss some time but he’s gonna be fine, no issues with him, not worried. pic.twitter.com/iB5k6NDAdf
— Adam Wexler (@AdamJWexler)
Click2Houston.com, NBC’s online page for KPRC, stated that Mixon was dealing with a tight hamstring. The Texans have not formally announced any specific injury for the running back to this point.
Despite the concern that Mixon is sidelined so early in camp, the Texans are still not worried about the long-term effects.
“He’s a fun, fun person to coach,” Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik said Saturday to KPRC. “I understand now why he was as good as he was at Cincinnati. He puts in an immense amount of work. He loves football.
“He does not stop wanting to learn, wanting to grow, which, again, just fits in with everyone else that we have. And he’s all-in on he’s going to do whatever it takes to win.”
Mixon may be missing some practice time, but it shouldn’t affect the team entering the dog days of training camp.
Mixon’s Injury History
Mixon has been relatively healthy over the last few years for Cincinnati. In 2018, Mixon had arthroscopic surgery on his knee, and it cost him a few games. In 2020, he missed a majority of the season due to a right foot injury.
Lower-body injuries plagued Mixon in 2021 and 2022, and it forced the former Oklahoma star to sit out four games.
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A hamstring injury like this so early in camp isn’t necessarily uncommon. Many NFL players don’t stretch properly right away and tweak their hamstrings early on in the process.
The fact that the Texans don’t appear to be concerned is more of a sign that the team is keeping him out as an overall precaution more than anything else with this being so early in the training camp session.
Should Fantasy Managers Be Concerned?
While the Texans may not be overly concerned about this minor injury, this does drastically affect how fantasy owners approach their upcoming drafts.
Even though the Texans are prepared to make Mixon their lead back and a hamstring injury won’t change that, there’s still reason for fantasy owners to be concerned.
Pro Football Network’s fantasy analyst Derek Tate broke down the impact of Mixon’s current injury.
“Training camp absences can always be a bit tricky to assess with veterans, but Houston Texans RB Joe Mixon missing a third practice should at least put this on your radar entering fantasy draft season,” Tate explained.
“After Mixon finished as a top-10 fantasy back for a third consecutive year, the Cincinnati Bengals parted ways with the productive Oklahoma Sooner product this offseason and he is projected to lead an ascending Texans’ offense in carries this year,” Tate continued.
“Mixon’s per-touch efficiency has never been among the elite, but he’s proven capable of handling 280 total touches over the last three years — where he has finished with a minimum of 1,200+ total yards and 9+ TDs.
“If Mixon’s injury is more serious than expected, Dameon Pierce and the newly acquired Cam Akers could compete for the leading role in this Texans’ backfield.”
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It’s too early in the camp session to know whether Mixon will be affected by this injury leading into the regular season.
Despite that, the more practices he misses, the more fantasy managers will have to factor this into their evaluation (and the more interesting his fantasy value becomes).
