Training camps have begun across the league, and the injuries have started too ... the latest of which involves Texans running back Joe Mixon. According to NFL Media's Ian Rapoport, Mixon faces "an extended absence" due to foot and ankle issues that he's been dealing with the entire offseason.
Mixon, who is already on the active/non-football injury list, is now in danger of missing the start of the regular season.
The veteran was a fantasy superstar in the first 11 weeks of last season, averaging a league-best 22.6 points per game. During that time, he averaged more than 100 scrimmage yards and scored 11 total touchdowns. He fell apart down the stretch, though, failing to score more than 10.6 fantasy points over his final four games.
If that late-season collapse weren't enough to have cause for concern, the Texans then signed Nick Chubb and drafted rookie Woody Marks during the offseason. Now with word that Mixon is going to miss extended time, he can no longer be looked at as a RB2 in fantasy drafts. Instead, he'll be a risk-reward flex starter or worse, depending on what we hear out of Houston's camp in the coming weeks.
In the event that Mixon is forced to miss time, Chubb would emerge as the team's new starter. He is nearly two years removed from a massive knee injury that included ACL, MCL and meniscus tears, but Chubb is also 29 years old and past his prime.
Still, the potential for a bigger workload could push him into the flex-starter conversation if Mixon is out. Marks, who isn't being drafted highly or at all in early leagues, is now a more attractive flier, too.
There's still a lot of unknowns here, so stay tuned.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Joe Mixon's Foot Injury Open Door For Nick Chubb In Fantasy Football Drafts.
