After the Houston Texans season ended during the Divisional Round against the Baltimore Ravens, coach DeMeco Ryans quickly identified areas the team needed to improve upon before departing M&T Bank Stadium. When it came to the rushing attack, Ryans was determined to bring in a running back who could catapult Houston's offense.
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His determination led to the Texans landing Pro Bowl running back Joe Mixon from the Cincinnati Bengals. NFL legend Todd Gurley recently revealed his top-five running backs entering the 2024 season on the '25-10 Podcast, which featured Mixon at No. 3.
"The top five right now, are obviously Christian McCaffery and Derrick Henry — they always going to be up there," Gurley said. "I’m going to put Joe Mixon in there. His situation was kind of the same as mine. You can see how they exited him out. [The Bengals] is trying to throw the ball more. I’m like, 'give that man the rock.'"
Despite a down year in 2023, Mixon is coming off his fourth career year of rushing for over 1,000 yards. He finished his final season with the Bengals, rushing for 1,034 yards on 257 attempts and nine touchdowns.
His best season came in 2021 when Mixon rushed for a career-best 1,205 yards on 292 carries and 13 touchdowns. His production helped the Bengals reach Super Bowl LVI, where Cincinnati fell 23-20 to the Los Angeles Rams. The Bengals' Super Bowl run also marked Mixon's only Pro Bowl season.
Ryans is excited to have Mixon as a part of the Texans en route to their championship journey. His excitement coincides with Mixon, who believes joining Houston was an extraordinary situation.
"I feel great being in this here situation," Mixon said. "Got a great group of guys around me. Talked to the coaches, and just where they see me playing in this here offense is definitely exciting times, man, so I just can't wait to get going."
