The Houston Texans will go as far as Joe Mixon's legs will take them in the NFL Playoffs.
The Texans will play at the top-seeded Kansas City Chiefs at 3:30 p.m. CT Saturday in the divisional round of the NFL Playoffs. To get to this point, the Texans handled the Los Angeles Chargers 32-12 while Mixon rushed for 106 yards and scored a TD last week.
Now, as the Texans' offense centers around Mixon, they will face one of the top-10 defenses against the run this season. So how what kind of numbers can Mixon put up against the Chiefs, and will it be enough for the Texans to pull of the upset?
The Texans played the Chiefs less than a month ago and lost 27-19. In the loss, Mixon had 14 carries for 57 yards and never got into the end zone in a game the Texans were never really out of.
For this next matchup, most daily fantasy apps set Mixon's rushing yard total at about 56-58 yards, which is around what he went for the last time against the Chiefs. His rushing attempt total is also pretty close to what it was last time at 15-16 attempts, compared to 14 carries last time.
Simply, Mixon should have a better day Saturday than he did a few weeks ago against the Chiefs. The only way he doesn't is if things go south quick for the Texans and the Chiefs get a big lead early.
The Texans will put this game on Mixon's legs, proven by the 25 carries he got last week. Not only is Mixon their best weapon on offense with a struggling C.J. Stroud, but the Texans also want to keep the ball out of Patrick Mahomes' hands. The best way to do that is run the ball and eat up clock.
Regardless of the result, Mixon should surpass 15 attempts in the game, and in turn, rush for more than the 57 yards he did last time. It's also likely that if the Texans are in this one at all, it means Mixon has probably gotten into the end zone at least once.