Fantasy Football: One Breakout Candidate From Every NFL Team
Joe Mixon, RB, Cincinnati Bengals
Joe Mixon has some well-publicized off-field issues, but there's never been much of a question about his on-field ability.
That's because the dude can ball.
Last season was Mixon's first campaign with more than 115 carries, and he ran for 1,274 yards and 10 scores on 187 attempts. Yards per carry is an imperfect stat, but Mixon's 6.8 clip from 2016 put him in the 91st percentile of backs at the college level, per PlayerProfiler.com.
Mixon also displayed some enticing receiving prowess at Oklahoma, hauling in 65 passes for 894 yards and 9 touchdowns over his two seasons.
This all-around production coupled with his athleticism -- he ran a 4.5 40-yard dash at 6'1", 228 pounds -- led to him being selected in the second round by the Cincinnati Bengals despite his off-field issues.
Like we touched on with McCaffrey, big-time college production and good testing numbers don't guarantee anything. With that said -- and I know this isn't a very advanced-stats take -- Mixon sure looks the part.
Cincy can't stop gushing about him, either.
Opportunity might be biggest thing standing in the way of a Mixon breakout. The Bengals' backfield is crowded, with Jeremy Hill and Giovani Bernard in the fold. Hill has disappointed since his big rookie season, but Bernard has proven himself to be a quality running back. While Gio may step right back into a role on passing downs, he is recovering from a torn ACL and may not be ready for Week 1.
The Bengals ranked ninth, seventh and fifth, respectively, in rushing attempts the last three seasons, so there should be enough carries to go around. But if Mixon can somehow seize the top-dog role, he could be a fantasy monster right out of the gate.
