Joe Mixon might be returning at the right moment for the Houston Texans.
Mixon returned to his first padded practice Thursday, increasing the likelihood of his availability in Sunday’s showdown against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium.
Expected to serve as the backbone of Houston’s ground game, Mixon has been sidelined since Week 2 after Bears linebacker T.J. Edwards used a hip-drop tackle to bring him down in the third quarter.
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Mixon did return for a Friday walkthrough in preparation for Week 4’s win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, but given that it wasn’t a physical practice, the Texans elected to shut him down.
Texans coach DeMeco Ryans has also been adamant about keeping Mixon’s status a weekly update and would not put an exact timetable on the return.
“We’ll continue to see how Joe does throughout the week,” Ryans said of Mixon’s status Wednesday.
Mixon is one of the Texans’ most dangerous weapons when healthy. He had 159 yards rushing on 30 carries and a touchdown in Week 1’s win over the Indianapolis Colts.
Should Mixon be cleared, Houston would have its top four runners back for the first time since Week 1. Dameon Pierce, who was sidelined for four games with a hamstring injury, returned as a part-time participant Wednesday.
“[We’re] excited to have Dameon back, back at practice,” Ryans said. “He’s done a great job with his rehab process and he’s back out working, so we’re expecting to have him ready to go for the game.”
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Dare Ogunbowale and Cam Akers have been the top two options at tailback through the past three games. Akers has scored two touchdowns, including a 15-yard run in Week 5’s win over the Bills.
Ogunbowale has been more so the pass-catching option for Houston on third down. In Week 4, he caught a game-winning 1-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Stroud with 18 seconds remaining. Last week, he finished second in receptions with catches for 57 yards.
“He has been huge for us, definitely on third-down,” Stroud said. “I definitely feel like he will continue to do that for us.”
Kickoff is scheduled for noon CT.
