A year ago, Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon quietly led the AFC in rushing despite the struggles of his team and lack of national attention.
Mixon might not hit that same accomplishment again for a team that waited until December to get its first win.
But he sure wouldn’t mind hitting the 1,000-yard mark again.
“I don’t think it will mean a lot to outside people. It’s more of an individual thing at this point to get that,” Mixon said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “That makes everything a lot better for me what I accomplished this year. I think it will be great a thing (for) people who claim our line is so terrible. So just imagine if we would have had a great line what we would have done. I’m just going off what everybody else says.”
Count Mixon among those who don’t care for what has been said about his offensive line.
Mixon currently stands at 643 yards and two scores on a 3.5 average with four games left. The running game has improved in recent weeks, partially due to the return of Andy Dalton, largely due to subtle changes to the approach in blocking up front.
It’s still a far cry from the 1,168 yards and eight scores on a 4.9 average Mixon put up last year. But the goal remains within reach and the Bengals offense — as well as fans — will take every little win they can get this season.
