Who Should I Start? Joe Mixon or Javonte Williams

Tuesday, September 26, 12:59 AM

Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon took 19 carries for 65 yards with one catch for an additional five yards in Monday's 19-16 win over the Los Angeles Rams. The ground game fell victim to a pass-centric Bengals first half that saw 33 Joe Burrow dropbacks to seven Mixon rush attempts, but that ratio evened out a bit in the second half with Cincinnati's defense disrupting the Rams all night. Mixon made a nice cut on a 14-yard dash to the end zone to top off a 10-play scoring drive out of the half to ignite the crowd and ease the pressing Bengals offense for the moment. The 27-year-old has produced solid, yet unspectacular returns in each of campaign's initial three games, amassing at least 70 total yards in each. Mixon may find running room hard to come by on the road in Week 4 against the Tennessee Titans, who have sold out to plug the trenches at the expense of a sieve-like secondary.

Sunday, September 24, 8:35 PM

The Denver Broncos couldn't really lean on their ground game after falling down big to the Miami Dolphins early in Week 3 on Sunday in a record-breaking 70-20 loss. Running back Javonte Williams did lead the backfield yet again with 11 carries, but he produced only 42 yards (3.8 yards per carry) on those 11 rushing attempts. He caught two of his three targets through the air for an additional 23 yards. The 23-year-old is still finding his footing in 2023 after tearing his ACL and LCL in Week 4 of last season against the Las Vegas Raiders, but the good news is that neither Samaje Perine or rookie Jaleel McLaughlin have really threatened Williams' workload early in the year as the Broncos ease him in. A Week 4 matchup against the 0-3 Chicago Bears could be a prime opportunity for Williams to be leaned on heavily next week.