The Houston Texans are a tough team to judge going into the Divisional Round. Before the year began, they were a dark horse Super Bowl pick with the monstrous rookie season from C. J. Stroud. However, Stroud hasn’t been nearly as impressive but thanks to an amazing defense, they have come so far already.
One bright spot for the team on offense has been Joe Mixon. However, an ankle injury has put his status for the Divisional Round in jeopardy.
What Is Joe Mixon’s Injury?
The running back has been having an electric year for the Texans. During the Wild Card Round against the Los Angeles Chargers, Mixon was outstanding. He finished the game with 106 yards and a touchdown, against the best-scoring defense in the NFL this season.
However, somewhere in that performance, it looks like Mixon reaggravated an ankle injury that has bothered him all season. Earlier in the year, it even caused him to miss three games, with Houston boasting a 2-1 record in that timeframe.
Without him, the load for carrying the ground game fell on the shoulders of Dameon Pearce and Dare Ogunbowale.
Will Mixon Play Against the Chiefs?
Update: Mixon is officially active and will play against the Chiefs.
Going up against the two-time defending Champions in the Divisional Round is going to be a tough task as it is. But, Mixon’s status continues to be in jeopardy for the game. After a limited practice session on Wednesday, he missed out entirely on Thursday’s practice.
But, with each passing day, the situation turns grimmer for fans in Houston. So far, his status for Saturday is still questionable. It could be a case of the Texans exercising caution for their star running back. But his injury and availability will be something worth monitoring as Houston gears up for Kansas City.
Mixon’s Impact on the Texans
Finishing 15th in the league in total rushing yards, Mixon ran for 1,016 yards, while adding 11 touchdowns as well. With Stroud having a down year, he finished 27th on PFN’s QB+ metric, the offense has been carried at times by the run game.
On his end, Mixon has been sensational, finishing with his highest average yards per carry since 2018 and the second-highest rushing touchdown total of his career. But, as a whole, the offense continues to suffer, ranking 28th in the league, according to PFN’s Offense+ metric.
“He wants the football,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said following the win against the Chargers. “You want to play well in the playoffs you have to be able to run the football. So Joe did a great job there today and he doesn’t do that without the way our guys block, tight ends, receivers, also the offensive line. Like collective effort there which allowed us to run the wall the way we did.”
It wasn’t what Houston had in mind this offseason. The former Cincinnati Bengal was part of a bunch of moves from the Texans to shore up their offense and make it even more explosive. Names like Mixon and Stefon Diggs were brought on. However, the Year One juice hasn’t been worth the squeeze.
If they plan to survive against a Kansas City team that is mostly whole again and has Patrick Mahomes quarterbacking the show in the playoffs, Mixon’s availability is going to be invaluable for them.
Texans vs. Chiefs Games Preview
Houston Texans
Team: The Texans have yet to win more than three games in a row during the C.J. Stroud era– they’ll need to run their win streak to four games to reach the Super Bowl.
QB: Stroud had a 27-yard rush against the Chargers – prior to that, he didn’t have 27 rushing yards in a game since Halloween.
Offense: The Texans bet heavily on Stroud early, part of a theme during the second half of their season:
Texans: Highest First Half Dropback Rates in 2024
- Saturday vs. Chargers: 78.8%
- Week 16 at Chiefs: 77.1%
- Week 12 vs. Titans: 73.9%
- Week 15 vs. Dolphins: 73.9%
- Week 17 vs. Ravens: 71%
Defense: Houston posted their second best Defense+ grade in our data base (since 2019) Their 88.7 grade was 5.6 points better than their best showing during the regular season.
Fantasy: Joe Mixon has recorded multiple red zone touches in 13 straight games.
Betting: The Texans opened the season 0-4 ATS – they are 8-5-1 since with covers against the Bill and Lions as a part of that.
Kansas City Chiefs
Team: Kansas City had a first round bye on their way to a title in 2022 and there were no signs of rust – they scored in each of their first three possessions and allowed just 5.1 yards per play in the first half in the divisional round.
QB: Patrick Mahomes posted an 84.8 grade in our QB+ metric this season, 10th best in the NFL (below his career norm, but ahead of his 81.5 from a season ago).
Offense: Kansas City settled for a field goal on just 13.4% of their drives in 2022 – their rate was 18.4% in 2023 and 18.9% this year.
Defense: In Weeks 15-17, understanding that this team rested most of their playmakers in Week 18, the Chiefs allowed a touchdown on just two of seven opponent red zone drives.
Fantasy: DeAndre Hopkins has topped out at a 63.1% snap share with Kansas City and now has to navigate a healthy Hollywood Brown who has been targeted on 44.1% of his routes in two games back.
Betting: The Chiefs had a losing ATS record in the 2022 season before going on to win the Super Bowl. The Chiefs had a negative average cover margin in 2023 before going on to win the Super Bowl. They did both of those things this past regular season.
