Now 29 years old, Mixon was expected to continue to lead the backfield. In his absence, Nick Chubb assumes the RB1 role. He signed this offseason as a free agent, leaving the Browns for the first time. The Texans also have Dameon Pierce, Dare Ogunbowale, fourth-round rookie Woody Marks and undrafted rookie Jawhar Jordan.

With Joe Mixon dealing with an injury, we discuss if Nick Chubb or Dameon Pierce will be the Texans starting running back as the 2025 season begins.

Now, that's certainly an eye-catching comment coming from Ryans when factoring in the pending status of Mixon. The Texans' veteran runner was far and away the lead man in Houston's backfield last year, handling a staggering 245 carries, 200+ more carries than the next closest backs in Dameon Pierce and Cam Akers, who each logged 40 apiece.