Joe Mixon draws parallels between CJ Stroud and former teammate Joe Burrow

In Joe Mixon's first season away from the Cincinnati Bengals, he has not missed a great quarterback at all. After four seasons in the same offense as Joe Burrow, Mixon signed with the Houston Texans this offseason. The change has been for good, as his yards-per-carry average has risen from 4.0 in 2023 to 4.9 in 2024.

Now with C. J. Stroud and the Texans, Mixon appeared on the "Green Light" podcast, hosted by former NFL defensive end and two-time Super Bowl champion Chris Long. When asked by Long about parallels between the two quarterbacks, he did not hesitate:

I [have] seen Joe Burrow, you know, when he was a rookie and up to his fourth year in the league. I think that Joe grew as a player. I think Joe Burrow's a hell of a player, obviously, you know, probably top two in the league. I guess everybody loved the comparison of him and Pat Mahomes, and Stroud [is] starting to get in that conversation. So whatever I can do to help C. J. become successful, that's what imma do. I think what makes him special is he also knows how to extend the play with with with his legs and also his arm.

Joe Mixon's excellent start to the season

After eight weeks, the running back already has just under half of the yards (503) he amassed during the 2023 season (1034). The caveat is that he played in just five games this NFL season, while he appeared in all 17 games in 2023.

Although Mixon has missed three games with injuries, once he's on the field, Houston knows that they are well-positioned to win. He already has four 100-yard games in just those five appearances; the Texans also won four of the five games he was available in 2024.

Nico Collins is still recovering from a hamstring injury, while Stefon Diggs is out for the rest of the season with a torn ACL. The importance of the running back has grown even higher as Houston deals with injuries, and he also has scored five touchdowns this year.