Who Should I Start? Joe Mixon or Dameon Pierce

Thursday, November 20, 12:34 PM

Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon (ankle, foot) is not expected to play this season as he deals with a foot injury from the offseason, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Mixon will likely stay on the Physically Unable to Perform list through the end of the 2025 season, while the Texans move forward with veteran Nick Chubb and rookie Woody Marks in their backfield. Things had been trending this way for a while, as the Texans haven't been giving any real updates on Mixon for pretty much the entire season. Fantasy managers who are still stashing the 29-year-old in redraft leagues should send him to the waiver wire now. Mixon's injury dates all the way back to spring workouts. One would think he'd be ready for the start of the 2026 campaign, but there has been little information about the exact nature of his injury. Marks, a fourth-rounder in April, has slowly started to see more work and should be the backfield leader over Chubb by the end of the year.

Tuesday, November 25, 8:00 PM

Kansas City Chiefs running back Dameon Pierce was signed to the practice squad on Monday. This news comes after Pierce was cut by the Houston Texans last week. The 25-year-old barely had a role in Houston, so a change of scenery was needed. This wasn't a perfect landing spot, but Pierce should see more action in Kansas City. Lead back Isiah Pacheco (knee) is currently banged up, but is expected to play against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. Outside of that, Kareem Hunt is the primary backup with Brashard Smith getting mixed in as well. At the moment, Pierce doesn't seem to have a path to consistent playing time, but that could change if Pacheco is unable to play. Fantasy managers should keep Pierce on their radar if someone goes out.