According to NFL insider Adam Schefter, the Houston Texans have released running back Joe Mixon after two seasons with the team. Mixon rushed for just over 1,000 yards and 11 touchdowns for Houston in 2024, but a lingering foot injury kept him out for the entirety of the 2025 season.
The exact nature and severity of the injury was a mystery to the public for the whole season, despite rumors that he would return to the field in 2025.
The release of Mixon saves the Texans his $8 million salary against their cap for the 2026 season. According to Schefter, Mixon had requested to be released on Thursday, March 5 and was granted that on Friday, March 6.
Mixon will now enter the free agent class as a highly sought after talent despite missing all of last season. Though he may have lost some value on the market, his talent and body of work speaks for itself; assuming full health, he should still be capable of being a top 10 RB in the NFL.
Examining the Release From Texans Perspective
For Houston, shedding Mixon’s salary made all the sense in the world, especially after they acquired David Montgomery from the Detroit Lions earlier this week. Houston also has the young Woody Marks who will command some carries alongside Montgomery, negating the need for Mixon.
The Texans had plenty of cap space before the release and this move frees up $8 million more. This will help with the recently agreed upon $40 million contract with defensive end Danielle Hunter.
Houston still has space to make more moves to bolster their offense heading into the 2026 season. The offense in 2025, while effective enough, was certainly the weak side of the ball for Houston. With the addition of Montgomery, one more move for help on the offensive line or at wide receiver could easily make the Texans Super Bowl contenders.
Houston should also get Tank Dell back for next season. The young receiver made his mark as a strong WR2 in 2023 and 2024, but a gruesome leg injury where he tore his ACL, MCL, and LCL kept him out for the entirety of the 2025 season.
Dell’s return will be a massive boost to the offense alongside Nico Collins.
Examining the Release From Mixon’s Perspective
After his mysterious foot injury kept him out for the entirety of the 2025 season, Mixon will now be looking for a new place to call home. In his first season with the Texans, Mixon had 1,016 rushing yards; that was the fifth time in his eight seasons that he eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards.
As he showed in one season with Houston and seven with the Cincinnati Bengals, Mixon is a dual-threat running back who brings a really diverse dynamic to the offenses he plays in. The emergence of Joe Burrow with Cincinnati opened up Mixon as a receiver, and he carried that with him in his first and only season in Houston.
But, a mysterious and lingering foot injury could cause plenty of teams to look elsewhere on the market. Mixon was getting about $8 million per season with the Texans; he probably won’t get anywhere north of $3 million in AAV on his next deal, and it will likely be for no longer than two seasons.
Texans Release Star Running Back Joe Mixon