Who Should I Start? Joe Mixon or Tyjae Spears

Wednesday, August 27, 10:36 AM

Houston Texans general manager Nick Caserio was non-committal on whether running back Joe Mixon (ankle) will play during the 2025 season when asked at a Wednesday press conference, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 in Houston. The veteran back is on the reserve/non-football injury list, meaning he will miss at least the first four games, but the Texans haven't seemed especially optimistic about his return. Caserio said Mixon will be evaluated after four weeks, but ultimately answered, 'We'll see,' when asked if the running back would come back this season. Houston signed Nick Chubb, still rosters Dameon Pierce, and drafted Woody Marks earlier this year to round out its backfield.

Tuesday, August 26, 11:25 AM

Tennessee Titans running back Tyjae Spears (ankle) will start the season on injured reserve and miss a minimum of four games, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Spears suffered a high ankle sprain in preseason play that will end up sidelining him for close to two months. With Spears set to miss the start of the season, Tony Pollard should be in for a significant volume of snaps and touches in the Titans' backfield. Rookie sixth-rounder Kalel Mullings (ankle) now looks like the leader to be the RB2, but he's dealing with an ankle injury of his own. When Spears returns, he profiles as a low-end RB3/flex option, but fantasy managers need to downgrade him given the now-guaranteed missed time.