Fantasy Index

header banner img
OUR FANTASY BASEBALL MAGAZINE IS BACK! PRE-ORDER NOW
Win here.

Factoid

Cincinnati Bengals

Joe Mixon could be difference-making back

With Joe Mixon, the discussion tends to quickly circle back to him punching a woman in the face back in 2014, breaking bones in that student’s face. A terrible incident, and one made more compelling by it being captured on a surveillance camera. But Mixon is going to play pro football, and when we instead start looking at what he does on the field, he looks pretty special.

I am particularly intrigued by Mixon’s ability in the passing game. He caught 65 passes for 894 yards and 9 TDs his last two years at Oklahoma. He’s much better as a receiver than typical running backs coming in.

Mixon has good hands, and once he gets the ball, good things tend to happen. He averaged an eye-popping 14.5 yards per catch last year. In this century, there have been 44 running backs selected in the first round. None of them averaged 14.5 yards per catch in their final college season.

FIRST-ROUND RUNNING BACKS, YARDS PER CATCH
YearPlayerNoYardsAvg
2017Joe Mixon, Cin.3753814.5
2008Chris Johnson, Tenn.3752814.3
2010C.J. Spiller, Buff.3650314.0
2007Adrian Peterson, Minn.1013613.6
2011Mark Ingram, N.O.2128213.4
2003Willis McGahee, Buff.2735513.1
2000Shaun Alexander, Sea.2532312.9
2006Reggie Bush, N.O.3747812.9
2000Jamal Lewis, Balt.1519312.9
2009Knowshon Moreno, Den.3339211.9
2012Trent Richardson, Clev.2933811.7
2004Kevin Jones, Det.1416111.5
2002William Green, Clev.2326011.3
2010Ryan Mathews, S.D.1112211.1
2008Felix Jones, Dall.1617611.0
2000Thomas Jones, Ariz.2223910.9
2004Steven Jackson, St.L.4447010.7
2001Deuce McAllister, N.O.1819010.6
2006Laurence Maroney, N.E.1717010.0
2017Leonard Fournette, Jac.151469.7
2010Jahvid Best, Det.222139.7
2007Marshawn Lynch, Buff.343289.6
2008Rashard Mendenhall, Pitt.343189.4
2005Ronnie Brown, Mia.343139.2
2012Doug Martin, T.B.282559.1
2000Ron Dayne, NYG199.0
2006Joseph Addai, Ind.201809.0
2003Larry Johnson, K.C.413498.5
2000Trung Canidate, St.L.302538.4
2017Christian McCaffrey, Car.373108.4
2004Chris Perry, Cin.443678.3
2005Cedric Benson, Chi.221798.1
2015Melvin Gordon, S.D.191538.1
2008Darren McFadden, Oak.211647.8
2016Ezekiel Elliott, Dall.272067.6
2005Cadillac Williams, T.B.211527.2
2002T.J. Duckett, Atl.12806.7
2008Jonathan Stewart, Car.221456.6
2006DeAngelo Williams, Car.12786.5
2009Donald Brown, Ind.211256.0
2009Beanie Wells, Ariz.8475.9
2012David Wilson, NYG221295.9
2001Michael Bennett, Minn.4235.8
2015Todd Gurley, St.L.12574.8
2001LaDainian Tomlinson, S.D.10404.0

Such a stat, of course, can be influenced by the structure of the offense (and the quality of the defenses playing against them). Some of the backs on that chart who averaged over 11 yards per catch ended up being pretty lousy on passing downs. LaDainian Tomlinson, on the other hand, caught only 10 passes for 40 yards his final year at Texas Christian, and he ends up being very good. Christian McCaffrey averaged only 8.4 yards per catch at Stanford, and he should be a big threat in the passing game.

My point is only that while many don’t care for Joe Mixon and don’t think he should be allowed in the league, he’s an awfully talented guy. If not for the off-field incident, he would have been a first-round pick, and I think he’s very much in the mix to finish with better numbers than Christian McCaffrey and Leonard Fournette.

—Ian Allan

Fantasy Index