Who Should I Start? Joe Mixon or J.K. Dobbins

Monday, July 22, 1:23 PM

Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon (undisclosed) has been held out of training camp practice the last few days, but head coach DeMeco Ryans said Mixon "will be fine." "I'm not worried out Joe." It's not a long-term injury for the 27-year-old, so he should be 100 percent in plenty of time for the start of the 2024 regular season this fall. Mixon's absence will give Dameon Pierce and Dare Ogunbowale, among others, more reps early in training camp in Houston's backfield. When healthy, the former Bengals RB will be the Texans' clear lead back in 2024. "Workhorse. He's an absolute workhorse, in every regard," offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik recently said of Mixon. He's joining an offense on the rise, but Mixon is probably going to need to be much more efficient as a runner than he was last year in order to finish as a top-12 fantasy back in his first year in Houston.

Thursday, July 25, 9:20 PM

Los Angeles Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins (Achilles) told reporters Thursday that he is one of the league's best running backs when healthy. "Ya'll know how much yards I averaged per carry," said Dobbins. The former Baltimore Raven has averaged 5.8 yards per carry since entering the league in 2020 -- the highest of any running back in that time. However, performance hasn't been the issue for the former Ohio State Buckeye; his availability has. He's appeared in just 24 of a potential 73 career games after falling victim to tears in his ACL and Achilles over the last few seasons. Despite this, Dobbins still views himself as a top talent in the league. "I feel like I'm in college out there right now," Dobbins said. "And I do think that the storm is over... You guys will see -- it'll be special." Dobbins has been a full go through two days of training camp, while Gus Edwards has yet to participate in team drills after an unspecified offseason surgery. Interestingly enough, Dobbins is currently being selected as the RB49 (ADP 150) -- 30 picks after Gus Edwards (RB40). It's possible he can provide some value this year with the caveat that he remains healthy.