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When will Joe Mixon return and play? Will Joe Mixon be back again this season? Read the latest Joe Mixon injury updates and return date for Week 7 (2025).
Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon (foot) has yet to take the field this season. The team's starting running back has been sidelined since training camp due to a foot injury and was shifted to the non-football injury/reserve list at the beginning of the regular season.
With the timeline continuously pushed back, should fantasy managers expect Mixon to return to the field this season?
When will Mixon return to action, and what is his fantasy football outlook when he does? Let's dive in.
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Joe Mixon Injury Update
Last week, the Texans provided a minor update regarding Mixon's health. Texans GM Nick Caserio told reporters that Mixon's status for the remainder of the campaign is "in limbo" and that the team would have more clarity on his availability later in the campaign.
Given this update, it does not appear Mixon is nearing any return to action. In fact, this report further suggests that his status for the remainder of the campaign is in serious doubt. While fantasy managers should continue to monitor his status, they should not expect him to return to practice any time soon, despite his spending the minimum four-game stint on the injured reserve.
More Clarity on Joe Mixon's 2025 Availability Coming Over the Next Few Weeks? https://t.co/KQnYxgV6uI
— RotoBaller NFL (@RotoBallerNFL) October 7, 2025
Joe Mixon Fantasy Football Outlook
As a result, fantasy managers should not expect Mixo to hold much fantasy value during the second half of the season. Managers in shallow formats should not consider stashing Mixon, as his timetable is still quite unclear. While managers in deeper leagues with IR could still stash Mixon, they should consider pivoting to alternative IR-eligible options with a more defined timeline.
For example, wide receivers Christian Watson (knee), Brandon Aiyuk (knee), and Jalen Coker (quadriceps) are expected to return this season, with Coker and Watson potentially making their season debuts in Week 7. All three of these players will hold much more value this season and could even emerge as viable FLEX options.
When looking at running backs, managers should instead look to stash high-upside handcuff options like Blake Corum, Tyler Allgeier, Isaiah Davis, or Jaydon Blue, who could emerge as high-end RB2s if they were to take their respective starting jobs. In Carolina, the No. 2 option, Rico Dowdle, has emerged as a must-start player due to Chuba Hubbard's (calf) injury.
Mixon may not even return to practice in the next month, which puts his availability for the regular season in serious doubt.
Who Should I Start Tool
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Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Deciding who to start instead? Some common Week 7 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Kenneth Gainwell, Jaylen Warren, Rico Dowdle, Kimani Vidal, Bam Knight. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 7. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 7 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 7 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Kenneth Gainwell, Jaylen Warren, Rico Dowdle, Kimani Vidal, Bam Knight. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 7.
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!
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Popular Week 7 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 7 (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 7 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Deciding who to start instead? Below are some popular Week 7 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Kenneth Gainwell, Jaylen Warren, Rico Dowdle, Kimani Vidal, Bam Knight compared to others:
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