The Houston Texans will face the Tennessee Titansin Week 18. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding RB Joe Mixon.
Is Joe Mixon Playing in Week 18?
Updated at 11:30 AM ET on Sunday, January 5
Mixon is active for today's game.
The Texans gave Mixon a light day at Wednesday’s practice. Mixon is not injured and will be fine to play on Sunday but is almost certainly not going to play the entire game with the Texans locked into the No. 4 seed. Mixon practiced in full on Thursday and was off the injury report entirely by Friday.
We’ll continue to monitor the Texans’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Joe Mixon in Week 18?
The Ravens were all over Mixon on Christmas Day (nine carries for 26 yards), a disaster for fantasy managers who have used this strong season as a way to vault to the top of their standings.
That makes it three straight games without a touchdown for Mixon, struggles that are highlighted even more by him averaging just 3.0 yards per carry over that stretch (39.8% production under expectation).
The Texans could always opt to manage their veteran back, but it’s not my day to run the team. If we don’t get word that a limited role is likely, I think you’re fine to plug Mixon in as an RB2. He earned a 19.4% target share in the first meeting with the Titans (Week 12) and has recorded multiple red-zone touches in not one, not two, but 11 straight games.
I have my concerns about Mixon for next season, but he’s made it this far. If he’s set to assume his standard role this week, I think you plug him in.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 18 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Joe Mixon’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 18
As of Sunday, Mixon is projected to score 13.7 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 13.1 rushing attempts for 56 yards and 0.5 touchdowns. It also includes 2.3 receptions for 17.5 yards and 0.1 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insight on the Titans' Defense
Similar to the Bears, the Titans' defense looks like a talented unit that has finally begun to crack under the strain of supporting a non-functional offense.
The pass defense has really dropped off. The Titans ranked 10th in EPA per dropback from Weeks 1-9 but have fallen to 30th since Week 10. Only the Jets and Giants have worse pass defenses over that stretch.
Tennessee's defense hasn't been bad for most of the year, and it helped the team steal a couple of wins. Still, the overall results are below average, and the unit has plenty of room to improve next season.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Joe Mixon’s Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 7:00 AM ET on Sunday, January 5. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Week 18 Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 18 RB PPR Rankings
1) Bijan Robinson | ATL (vs. CAR)
2) Jahmyr Gibbs | DET (vs. MIN)
3) Derrick Henry | BAL (vs. CLE)
4) Jonathan Taylor | IND (vs. JAX)
5) Josh Jacobs | GB (vs. CHI)
6) Bucky Irving | TB (vs. NO)
7) Chase Brown | CIN (at PIT)
8) Aaron Jones | MIN (at DET)
9) De'Von Achane | MIA (at NYJ)
10) Zach Charbonnet | SEA (at LAR)
11) Brian Robinson Jr. | WAS (at DAL)
12) Breece Hall | NYJ (vs. MIA)
13) Ray Davis | BUF (at NE)
14) D'Andre Swift | CHI (at GB)
15) Rico Dowdle | DAL (vs. WAS)
16) Isaac Guerendo | SF (at ARI)
17) J.K. Dobbins | LAC (at LV)
18) Najee Harris | PIT (vs. CIN)
19) Jaleel McLaughlin | DEN (vs. KC)
20) Joe Mixon | HOU (at TEN)
21) Tyrone Tracy Jr. | NYG (at PHI)
22) Kenneth Gainwell | PHI (vs. NYG)
23) Blake Corum | LAR (vs. SEA)
24) Tank Bigsby | JAX (at IND)
25) Jaylen Warren | PIT (vs. CIN)
26) Travis Etienne Jr. | JAX (at IND)
27) Rhamondre Stevenson | NE (vs. BUF)
28) Michael Carter | ARI (vs. SF)
29) Rachaad White | TB (vs. NO)
30) D'Onta Foreman | CLE (at BAL)
31) Kimani Vidal | LAC (at LV)
32) Miles Sanders | CAR (at ATL)
33) Tyler Allgeier | ATL (vs. CAR)
34) Audric Estimé | DEN (vs. KC)
35) Will Shipley | PHI (vs. NYG)
36) Alexander Mattison | LV (vs. LAC)
37) Antonio Gibson | NE (vs. BUF)
38) Javonte Williams | DEN (vs. KC)
39) Raheem Blackshear | CAR (at ATL)
40) Ty Johnson | BUF (at NE)
41) Devin Singletary | NYG (at PHI)
42) Cam Akers | MIN (at DET)
43) Raheem Mostert | MIA (at NYJ)
44) Roschon Johnson | CHI (at GB)
45) Craig Reynolds | DET (vs. MIN)
46) Kenny McIntosh | SEA (at LAR)
47) Jeremy McNichols | WAS (at DAL)
48) Cordarrelle Patterson | PIT (vs. CIN)
49) Braelon Allen | NYJ (vs. MIA)
50) Julius Chestnut | TEN (vs. HOU)
51) Samaje Perine | KC (at DEN)
52) Patrick Taylor Jr. | SF (at ARI)
53) Sean Tucker | TB (vs. NO)
54) Jamaal Williams | NO (at TB)
55) Isaiah Davis | NYJ (vs. MIA)
56) Chris Brooks | GB (vs. CHI)
57) Pierre Strong Jr. | CLE (at BAL)
58) Clyde Edwards-Helaire | NO (at TB)
59) Emanuel Wilson | GB (vs. CHI)
60) Mike Boone | CAR (at ATL)
61) Tony Pollard | TEN (vs. HOU)
62) DeeJay Dallas | ARI (vs. SF)
63) Chris Rodriguez Jr. | WAS (at DAL)
64) Dare Ogunbowale | HOU (at TEN)
65) Rasheen Ali | BAL (vs. CLE)
66) Khalil Herbert | CIN (at PIT)
67) Trey Sermon | IND (vs. JAX)
68) Hassan Haskins | LAC (at LV)
69) Kyle Juszczyk | SF (at ARI)
70) Dameon Pierce | HOU (at TEN)
71) Jaylen Wright | MIA (at NYJ)
72) Carson Steele | KC (at DEN)
73) Sione Vaki | DET (vs. MIN)
74) Hunter Luepke | DAL (vs. WAS)
75) Tyler Goodson | IND (vs. JAX)
76) Ke'Shawn Vaughn | SF (at ARI)
77) Alec Ingold | MIA (at NYJ)
78) C.J. Ham | MIN (at DET)
79) Michael Burton | DEN (vs. KC)
80) D'Ernest Johnson | JAX (at IND)
81) Jeff Wilson Jr. | MIA (at NYJ)
82) Eric Gray | NYG (at PHI)
83) Jermar Jefferson | DET (vs. MIN)
84) Patrick Ricard | BAL (vs. CLE)
85) Joshua Kelley | NYG (at PHI)
86) Ty Chandler | MIN (at DET)
87) Israel Abanikanda | SF (at ARI)
88) Adam Prentice | NO (at TB)
89) Dylan Laube | LV (vs. LAC)
90) JaMycal Hasty | NE (vs. BUF)
91) George Holani | SEA (at LAR)
92) James Cook | BUF (at NE)
Texans at Titans Trends and Insights
Houston Texans
Team: The Texans are 4-6 over their past 10 games after winning 12 of 16 regular season games prior.
QB: C.J. Stroud threw 116 deep passes as a rookie, averaging 14.5 yards per attempt with nine touchdowns and zero interceptions in the process. This season, on 122 such passes, Stroud is averaging 11.0 yards per pass with five touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Offense: On Wednesday, the Texans averaged under 20 yards per drive for the fourth time this season – they did it once in 2023.
Defense: Week 17 was the fifth time this season that Houston failed to prevent a touchdown on a single red zone trip.
Fantasy: John Metchie III was the player who saw his stock rise the most in the first game following Tank Dell’s injury – he matched a season-high snap share (72.2%) and earned a 25.8% target share in the loss to the Ravens.
Betting: The Texans are 3-1 ATS against the AFC East this season and 3-8-1 ATS against the rest of the NFL.
Tennessee Titans
Team: Tennessee’s last home win in regulation was Week 18 last season (28-20 win over the Jaguars).
QB: Mason Rudolph has completed four passes against the blitz over the past three weeks – three have resulted in touchdowns.
Offense: The Titans are seven-of-20 on fourth downs this season (35%; they haven’t finished a season under 50% since 2019).
Defense: Tennessee fell to 0-7 on Sunday in weeks in which they did not force a turnover.
Fantasy: The on-field target share distribution with Mason Rudolph under center is about as split as it can be and that’s a pain for fantasy managers:
- Calvin Ridley: 23.6%
- Josh Whyle: 25%
- Chig Okonkwo: 23.4%
- Tyjae Spears: 23.4%
Betting: Tennessee is 0-7 ATS at home this season (failing to cover by an average of 6.2 points per game) and have covered just one of their past 11 in front of their fans.