Texans Dealing With Notable Injury Ahead of Chiefs Playoff Game
By Jovan Alford
The No. 1 seed Kansas City Chiefs will begin their quest for an unprecedented third-straight Super Bowl title on Saturday against the Houston Texans in the divisional round. The Chiefs got a chance to rest as the Texans had to play in the wild-card round last week, where they defeated the Los Angeles Chargers.
It will be the second time within a month that these two teams have played each other. In Week 16, the Chiefs defeated the Texans, 27-19 at Arrowhead. Kansas City’s defense forced Texans QB C.J. Stroud into two interceptions while holding Houston’s running game to 84 yards.
For the Texans to keep Saturday’s game competitive, they will need veteran RB Joe Mixon to play a huge role. However, Mixon’s availability for this weekend’s game is up in the air, which is good news for the Chiefs and their fans.
According to Pete Sweeney of Arrowhead Pride, Mixon was added to the divisional round injury report with an ankle injury on Wednesday. The Texans' star running back was listed as limited but was downgraded to a non-participant on Thursday, which is not a good sign.
Worth watching: RB Joe Mixon (ankle) was added to the #Texans' injury report Wednesday as a limited participant. He was downgraded to a non-participant Thursday and is now officially questionable to play against the #Chiefs on Saturday.
— Pete Sweeney (@pgsween) January 16, 2025
Nonetheless, Houston officially listed the 28-year-old Mixon as questionable on the final injury report for Saturday’s contest. Mixon dealt with ankle issues earlier this season, which forced him to miss three games (Weeks 3-5).
In the Texans’ playoff win last week, Mixon had 106 yards on the ground and a touchdown on 25 carries. He also added a 13-yard reception. When the Chiefs played Houston in Week 16, Mixon only produced 57 yards on 14 carries.
If Mixon cannot play or is limited, the Texans will likely turn to Dameon Pierce. The 24-year-old running back didn’t play much in Week 16 against KC or last week’s playoff game.
With this latest news, Kansas City’s defense potentially not having to worry about Mixon in the backfield could allow them to up the pressure on Stroud, who was sacked three times and threw an interception last week against the Chargers.
The Chiefs’ run defense was one of the best in the league during the regular season, allowing 101.8 yards per game (eighth-fewest). At home, Steve Spagnuolo’s unit only gave up 96.5 yards on the ground, which is impressive.
Despite the uncertainty around Mixon’s status, Kansas City is only an 8.5-point home favorite on FanDuel Sportsbook.
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