Sportsnaut
While there will still be a few changes in the next few days, the Houston Texans’ initial 53-man roster is set. Unfortunately, one of their projected starters won’t be with the team at the start of the year. In fact, there’s now some fear that he could miss the entire season.
While the Texans were setting their final roster, they placed two-time Pro Bowl running back Joe Mixon on the Non-Football Injury (NFI) list. That means he’ll miss the first four games of the season.
Yet, as Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio mentioned, Mixon’s injury remains “cloaked in mystery.” Is it a foot injury? An ankle? How exactly did the injury occur? Mixon and the Texans haven’t said.
According to Texans general manager Nick Caserio, there’s no guarantee Mixon will even be available later on in the year, either. At least, Caserio wouldn’t commit to Mixon coming back any time soon.
When asked about his starting running back’s availability, Caserio said, “Once we get through four weeks, we’ll evaluate it at that time.”
The Texans’ GM was then asked if he expects Mixon to play at all, he replied, “We’ll see, we’ll take it one day at a time.”
In the meantime, the Texans have four-time Pro Bowler Nick Chubb replacing Mixon in the starting lineup. Yet, the 29-year-old has battled injuries each of the past two seasons, playing in just 10 games. Plus, he hasn’t had a 1,000-yard season since 2022.
In other words, there’s no guarantee the one-time elite back will be nearly as effective as he once was. Yet, the Texans are hoping a backfield comprised of Mixon, Dameon Pierce, Dare Ogunbowale, and rookie fourth-round pick Woody Marks is enough to do the trick.
Who knows, maybe Mixon will return at some point in the season, just in time to help the Texans make a playoff run for the third season in a row.
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