RB Mixon gives balance to Bengals’ offense
What Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon put on tape against the Las Vegas Raiders could cause opposing defenses to think twice.
Mixon rushed for 123 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries in Week 11. This was Mixon’s best performance of the season, and it came at the right time. Cincinnati’s hot start offensively had been paced by quarterback Joe Burrow and Ja’marr Chase. Mixon wasn’t necessarily viewed as a key cog of the team’s game plan.
That should change moving forward. “When coach dials it up for us to play complementary football ... we put the nail in the coffin,” Mixon said.
And coach Zac Taylor is definitely willing to dial it up.
“There were a lot of examples to point out (Sunday) really of different guys on different plays,” Taylor said. “We really emptied the tank on a lot of variations of runs: tight zone, wide zone, gap scheme, toss plays, jet sweeps. We threw it all at them and so different guys are going to have to step up in different areas.”
Prior to the start of the season, Taylor and offensive coordinator Brian Callahan expressed their desire to feature Mixon more as a three-down running back. Mixon has 759 yards on 180 carries this year, so the Bengals are now reaping the benefits of giving him more touches, which has caught the attention of Pittsburgh
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin.
“Joe Burrow, Ja’marr Chase, (Tee) Higgins, (Tyler) Boyd, those guys, C.J. Uzomah at tight end, they are a challenge but we better not underestimate Joe Mixon and his impact,” Tomlin said when discussing his team’s upcoming matchup with Cincinnati.
The Bengals still have to play each AFC North team one more time, and wintry weather could start to play a factor. Mixon is excited about that.
“I’m ready for whatever they throw (at) me,” he said. “I know sometimes, it might be more of the run. Sometimes, more of the pass. But I definitely look forward to playing in November, December, because, like I said, we have everything that we need to get in the playoffs.“