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Will Joe Mixon start for the Houston when he returns? Mitch Blatt breaks down the Week 11 Joe Mixon return timeline and fantasy football outlook.
Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon had a huge season in his first year with the Houston Texans after a seven-year career with the Cincinnati Bengals.
In 14 games last season, Mixon ran for 1,016 yards and scored 11 touchdowns. His touchdown total and yards per carry average were both the second-best of his career, while his per game yardage average was his third best. That's pretty impressive for a 28-year-old.
Before training camp started, Mixon injured his foot in a non-football-related incident, and he has missed the first 10 weeks of the season. With Mixon's potential return getting closer, can we expect him to be the RB1 for the Texans when he's back?
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Will Joe Mixon Start For The Texans When He Returns?
The Texans running back room is complicated with the presence of rookie Woody Marks and veteran Nick Chubb, whom the Texans signed in June 2025. Both Marks and Chubb have been playing relatively well despite inconsistent play from the Texans' offensive line.
Chubb and Marks are gaining 2.53 and 2.52 yards after contact per ru,n respectively, which rank them No. 30 and No. 31 for backs with 80 or more carries. Mixon averaged 2.92 yards after contact per attempt last season and has averaged 2.80 in his career.
Marks, a fourth-round draft pick out of USC, has gradually been taking over the Texans' backfield and had his first start of his career in Week 10. Marks's usage has increased most weeks. He was on the field for over 40% of snaps for the first time in Week 3, and since then, he has hit 40% in six of the last seven games. With 60 offensive snaps last week, he hit a high of 80.0% usage in the Texans' win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Importantly in the Jaguars game, Marks not only started, he was used as the primary back from the first snap all the way through the fourth quarter. His usage was not tied to down or game script. While Marks might not have 60 snaps very often, it does look like he will continue to be the preferred RB1 over Chubb.
Woody Marks is Claiming More Work in Houston https://t.co/hjsPv5LCTV
— RotoBaller NFL (@RotoBallerNFL) November 11, 2025
There have not been any updates about Mixon's recovery nor his expected return. The last vague news about Mixon came in early October when Texans GM Nick Caserio said he was making progress but remained in "limbo." Given that we do not know anything, we should expect that Mixon will most likely not return in Week 11 and could miss the rest of the season. If he does return, expect Marks to continue operating as the RB1.
Joe Mixon Fantasy Football Outlook
Mixon's fantasy value is extremely limited. He remains sidelined with a foot injury, and outside observers have no information about the specifics of the injury, how it happened, nor whether or when Mixon might return.
With the fantasy playoffs coming up soon, managers must ask themselves if it's really worth spending a roster spot on a player who could never play this season. If your league has multiple IR spots, it might be worth it to keep Mixon stashed there. But if he's clogging a bench spot, you should highly consider cutting Mixon.
Even if Mixon returns, he likely won't take many carries in the first couple of weeks he is back. First, the Texans wouldn't want to overload him before his foot has shown it can hold up. Second, the Texans are already getting pretty good play from Woody Marks and Nick Chubb.
With Marks being the future running back of the franchise, expect him to command the bulk of touches. Marks is a rookie, so he's going to be with the Texans for at least three more years, and his career is on an upward trajectory, as opposed to those of Chubb and Mixon, who are both 29 years old. Chubb is a free agent after this season. Mixon has one year left on his contract, but the Texans can cut him and take just a $2 million dead cap hit. Marks is the Texans' future.
No Timetable for Joe Mixon's Return https://t.co/Hib7RlCrYy
— RotoBaller NFL (@RotoBallerNFL) October 20, 2025
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Popular Week 11 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 11 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Quentin Johnston, RJ Harvey, Kyle Monangai, Kimani Vidal, Devin Singletary, DJ Moore compared to others:
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