Not too long ago, the Oklahoma Sooners tandem of Joe Mixon and Samaje Perine terrorized NFL defenses together before they both headed to the pros.
Now they’re both members of the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Bengals added Perine via waivers after cutting the roster to 53 players, seeking depth in the wake of another Oklahoma product—Rodney Anderson— suffering an injury.
Perine says he’s seen the very public campaign Mixon has put on for the Bengals to go get him after Washington waived him.
“I mean, it definitely worked out. It worked out,” Perine said, according to Bengals.com. “The words of encouragement is always a good thing. He just told me to keep my head up and don’t let it get to me.”
In 2015 with the Sooners, Perine rushed for 1,349 yards and 16 touchdowns on a 6.0 average while Mixon had 753, seven and 6.7. The next year, Perine had 1,060, 12 and 5.4 with Mixon at 1,274, 10 and 6.8.
Perine’s role figures to be depth only as he gets acclimated to his new team, with Mixon and Giovani Bernard, if not Trayveon Williams, still expected to carry the load. But the culture shift and aggressiveness in going out to get players — and guys other players want — seems like a good sign. Just ask Mixon:
