Who Should I Start? Joe Mixon or Kaleb Johnson

Saturday, January 18, 7:44 PM

Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon was one of the few bright spots for his team in a season-ending defeat to Kansas City on Saturday, during which he compiled 100 yards from scrimmage and scored his team's only touchdown. The former Cincinnati Bengal rushed for a game-high 88 yards on 18 carries, and also hauled in two of his three targets for another 12 yards. Unfortunately for Houston, its pass protection and kicking game were major letdowns, as the line allowed eight sacks and kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn missed two field goals and an extra point. It was a largely productive first season in Houston for Mixon, who hit 1,000 yards rushing and scored 12 regular-season touchdowns, but Houston's season concludes in the Divisional Round for the second straight year.

Wednesday, April 30, 1:36 PM

The Athletic's Mike DeFabo lists Pittsburgh Steelers rookie third-round running back Kaleb Johnson as a co-starter with Jaylen Warren in an early look at the team's positional battles this offseason. Johnson, who stands at 6-foot-1, 224 pounds, is a physical back that is built to carry the load. It remains to be seen how the Steelers will divvy up the touches in their backfield in 2025, but it's widely believed that Johnson was taken with the 83rd overall pick to essentially replace Najee Harris, who signed with the Los Angeles Chargers in free agency. The 21-year-old had 240 carries for 1,537 yards and 21 touchdowns for Iowa in 2024 and also caught 22 passes for 188 yards and two more TDs. Warren starred in a third-down role for Pittsburgh his first three years and will take valuable touches away from Johnson in his rookie campaign, even if Johnson is the go-to guy on early downs.