Despite rumblings of a lightened workload in his return from knee surgery, Joe Mixon operated as a true workhorse versus Miami. The sophomore stud looked fully healthy while playing on 78% of the snaps, logging a season-high 25 total touches (3 rec.) for 115 yards and a score. Meanwhile, backup Mark Walton handled a robust 2 catches for 3 yards, laying to bed any “conditioning questions” surrounding Mixon. Moving forward, lock this workhorse into lineups as a matchup-proof RB1.
Mixon has now touched the ball at least 22 times in all three of his 2018 contests, while topping 19 FPs in 2 of 3 contests. Marvin Lewis has expressed his preference for a workhorse, suggesting 22+ carries and 4+ catches as his ideal Mixon Workload.
Granted, these comments came before Giovani Bernard‘s explosion as a starter. But Bill Lazor‘s offense, which has surged as predicted and now ranks 4th in the league with 30.6 Points per game, features plenty of no-huddle and operates best with one featured guy. Mixon seems destined for 20+ weekly touches, is game-flow proof thanks to his increased receiving usage, and has been one of the most dangerous players in space. This is a recipe for high-end RB1 outputs every week, and anyone not ranking Mixon alongside the elite horses should be preyed upon for a Buy Low. He’d be a fringe first rounder if drafting today.
