Cris Collinsworth says anger at the Bengals is driving Texans’ Joe Mixon

Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth spoke during NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” about running back Joe Mixon’s success in his first season with the Houston Texans, and Collinsworth said that the March trade of Mixon by the Cincinnati Bengals to the Texans for a 2024 seventh-round draft pick gave Mixon added incentive to prove himself with his new team this season.

Mixon, who played his first seven NFL seasons with the Bengals, entered Sunday night with 609 rushing yards and 115 receiving yards in six games this season, with a career-high 4.8 yards per carry.

“You saw Mixon a lot with the Bengals. … Things feel a little different here for him. Why?” Tirico Collinsworth asked during the second quarter of Sunday night’s broadcast of the Week 10 NFL game between the Texans and Detroit Lions.

“I think he’s crazy,” Collinsworth said. “I think it’s hard for him to believe with everything he did for the Cincinnati Bengals that it was a seventh-round draft pick that they gave up.”

In his first NFL regular-season game since the trade, Mixon posted the third-best rushing game of his career, running for 159 yards with a touchdown in Houston’s season-opening win over Indianapolis.

After the game, Mixon said he didn’t wish the Texans had the Bengals on their schedule.

“Because I just want to leave them where they are, just like they left me, man,” Mixon said. “I’m happy to be on my new team, man, and hugs. … I feel great to be valued here and to play a big role in what we do. … I’m just glad I’m on this site now.”

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This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cris Collinsworth: Anger over Bengals trade drives Texans’ Joe Mixon

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