Joe Mixon Placed On Reserve/Non-Football Injury List

2025 Fantasy Football Impact

Given the vibes surrounding Mixon all summer, this felt inevitable.

Mixon’s ankle injury has kept him out of practice, and with the Texans not activating the 29-year-old RB from the NFI list, he’ll now miss at least the first four games of the season. However, we have him projected to miss six games this season, making him an easy fade in fantasy drafts.

For the foreseeable future, Houston’s backfield will be a mix of Nick Chubb, Dameon Pierce, Dare Ogunbowale and Woody Marks. Chubb played nearly 80% of the snaps alongside QB CJ Stroud in his last preseason game, unsurprisingly ceding passing downs work to Ogunbowale. Notably, Chubb had been splitting first-team practice reps with Pierce, who did not play in last weekend’s preseason game.

Chubb will open the year as the early-down and goal line RB, but his grip on the role is far from secure. Pierce could force a timeshare, while Ogunbowale and Marks will surely handle passing work. Pierce fits new OC Nick Caley’s run scheme much better than Bobby Slowik’s zone-based approach. Caley will bring over a man/gap scheme, which is what Houston utilized 25% of the time during Pierce’s impressive 2022 rookie campaign.

Expect the Texans to rely on the pass game more in 2025. For now, consider Chubb a low-upside, touchdown dependent FLEX option, with Pierce being a fine late-round target.