Joe Mixon was one of the biggest Week 1 winners with his 22 touch, 149 yard breakout game against the Colts. Marvin Lewis was so impressed by Mixon’s performance that he said he believes Mixon can average 25 touches per game.
Mixon screams workhorse running back in this offense and is climbing up our rankings as a result. Last season, the biggest knock on Mixon was his inefficiency as a runner. That appeared to head in the right direction at the end of last season, as Mixon averaged 5.01 yards per carry in his final four games. The turnaround appears to continue so far in 2018, as Mixon ran the ball 17 times for 95 yards (5.6 YPC) and a touchdown.
What’s more important is Mixon’s usage rate out of the backfield. Fellow running back Gio Bernard only touched the ball twice, as Mixon commanded the rest (92 percent of touches). The former Sooner was on the field for 78 percent of the snaps, with 24 of those snaps coming in the passing game as a potential target. Mixon’s receiving role is secure in this offense, even with an explosive back, such as Bernard behind him. Mixon might just be scratching the surface of his ceiling and could be on precipice of achieving fantasy “cheat code” status.
