A year ago, the Bengals were widely expected to cut running back Joe Mixon before the Texans traded a seventh-round draft pick for him. At the time, some wondered why the Texans would trade anything at all for a player who was about to be available without having to give up a pick. But Texans General Manager Nick Caserio saw value in acquiring Mixon before he could hit the free market.
Caserio appeared on PFT Live at the Scouting Combine and said the certainty of knowing they’d have Mixon without other teams jumping in was worth making a trade.
“Joe was a tremendous asset to our team,” Caserio said. “It was an opportunity where we jumped the line a little bit before he got released. It was a unique situation, but we talked about it with the coaching staff: What are your thoughts, you feel good about it? And then we got on the phone.”
Caserio indicated that he doesn’t necessarily agree with the devaluing of the running back position that has taken place in the NFL in recent years, saying he thinks a good back helps in all aspects of the offense.
“If you can give a guy the ball and he can get yards, that takes a lot of pressure off a lot of players,” Caserio said.
Mixon’s cap hit of $9.5 million this season is high by modern running back standards, but Caserio thinks he’s worth the Texans’ investment.
