Is new Texans RB Joe Mixon a missing piece for the offense in 2024?

C.J. Stroud played hero ball regularly during his record-setting rookie season for the Houston Texans.

In short, he had to since the run game headlined by Devin Singletary and Dameon Pierce was underwhelming at best amid a run through the postseason. Singletary at least caught wind down the stretch, but the damage was done for a bottom-10 finish in the league.

The Texans knew prioritizing the run game was a must this offseason. They had conversations with Singletary to return as a secondary option, but he elected to join the New York Giants on a three-year deal.

Speaking of New York, Houston remained in the hunt for Pro Bowler Saquon Barkley down to the final seconds, but he chose to join forces with Jalen Hurts in Philadelphia.

Houston never panicked and overspent for whatever was remaining. Instead, Nick Caserio pivoted to the trade market once rumors swirled that Pro Bowler Joe Mixon was getting cut in 24 hours, offering Cincinnati a seventh-round pick for a one-year rental.

Stroud connecting with Joe Mixon in OTA’s!

Mixon could lowkey be a PPR monster this season with the Texans, keep an eye out on him 👀pic.twitter.com/WWI3CiAwhh

— Clutch City Entertainment (@ClutchCityENTX) May 30, 2024

And instead of being caught in a similar spot next offseason, Houston handed Mixon a three-year, $27 million extension to become the ground game’s mainstay. Should he continue to be the same volume-esque runner at NRG Stadium as during his time in Cincinnati, that could separate Houston from a promising roster to a Super Bowl-front-runner one.

“It doesn’t matter what run scheme you run, he has run zone schemes, he has run gap schemes, he has been used as a receiver, he has really done everything,” Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik said.

Consistency will always be the word of conversation when discussing Mixon’s role in Houston. It was a reason he served as a mainstay for Joe Burrow in Year 2 as the Bengals clinched their first AFC title since 1988.

Mixon, a second-round pick out of Oklahoma in 2017, averaged 4.4 yards per run during his seven seasons as the Bengals’ lead runner. He surpassed the 1,000-yard marker four times and currently has the seventh-most rushing scores among active runners with 49.

Joe Mixon stats in 2023 :

Yards – 1034 (8th)
TDs – 9 (8th)
1st Downs – 59 ( 5th)
Rec Yards – 376 (10th)
0 Fumbles

With all that being said, claiming he’s a not even a top 20 RB is ridiculous.

You’ve been warned bout that Boi