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Is Joe Mixon out for the season? When is Joe Mixon coming back? The latest Joe Mixon injury update and fantasy football outlook heading into Week 5 of 2025.
Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon (foot) has remained on the non-football/injury reserve list since the beginning of the regular season. However, with his practice window opening this week, Mixon could be cleared to begin ramping up for his eventual return.
Despite this, the team has not provided many updates regarding his status, which has kept his status in doubt.
Will Mixon play again this season? Should fantasy managers stash him on their bench? Let's dive in!
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Is Joe Mixon Out for the 2025 Season?
On Monday, the Texans finally provided a long-awaited update on their top running back as he could return or participate this week. According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2, Mixon is "not close" to a return to the field.
While he is eligible to return to practice, it appears the top running back in Houston is still several weeks away and potentially months from a return to the field.
As a result, fantasy managers should continue to expect Mixon to remain on the reserve list for the foreseeable future. While he has not been officially ruled out of the remainder of the season, it appears Mixon will be facing an uphill battle to return to action.
Joe Mixon Not Ready to Return https://t.co/x22mNOdy8w
— RotoBaller NFL (@RotoBallerNFL) September 29, 2025
Joe Mixon 2025 Fantasy Football Outlook
Given this update, which suggests Mixon's return is still far away, managers in shallower formats should not consider stashing Mixon on their roster. Instead, Mixon should only have been stashed in leagues that have IR spots. However, given his uncertain timeline, there are several players on the IR, such as Brandon Aiyuk (knee), Christian Watson (knee), and Jalen Coker (quadriceps), who have more defined timelines and much higher upside to make an impact this season.
In addition, during their Week 4 victory over the Tennessee Titans, the Texans began to provide fourth-round rookie Woody Marks a prominent role in the backfield. In this contest, the rookie led the way, surpassing veteran Nick Chubb, totaling 69 yards and a score on the ground, along with 50 yards and a second touchdown on four receptions.
The coaching staff also expressed that Marks could be positioned to take on an even larger role in the Houston backfield, suggesting that they are preparing for the possibility that Mixon may be unable to return this season.
As a result, outside of deeper leagues that have IR spots, Mixon carries minimal fantasy value that is not worth holding on your bench.
Woody Marks Emerging as the RB1 in Houston? https://t.co/gV2hSz1Pfr
— RotoBaller NFL (@RotoBallerNFL) September 29, 2025
Who Should I Start Tool
Not sure who to start? Check out the Who Should I Start tool:
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 5 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Woody Marks, Chris Rodriguez Jr., Kendre Miller, Kareem Hunt, Tyler Allgeier, Justice Hill. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 5. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 5 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Week 5 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Woody Marks, Chris Rodriguez Jr., Kendre Miller, Kareem Hunt, Tyler Allgeier, Justice Hill. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 5.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, players news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do, is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 5 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 5 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 5 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 5 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Woody Marks, Chris Rodriguez Jr., Kendre Miller, Kareem Hunt, Tyler Allgeier, Justice Hill compared to others:
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