Adrian Fedkiw
It really depends on if Joe Mixon’s talent is worth the potential public relations chaos.
Multiple teams like the New England Patriots have already taken Mixon off of their draft board. He was suspended for the 2014 season at Oklahoma for punching a woman in the face and has since reached a settlement with her. This was Mixon and the student Amelia Molitor’s joint statement on Friday.
“I’m thankful Mia and I were able to talk privately,” Mixon said. “I was able to apologize to her one-to-one. The way I reacted that night, that’s not me. That’s not the way I was raised. I think she understands that. Talking together helps move us past what happened. I know I have to keep working to be a better person, and this is another step in that direction.”
Despite what you think of Mixon as a human being, you can’t deny the versatile skill set. He set an Oklahoma single-season school record for all-purpose yards in 2016.
Let’s check out his tape …
STRENGTHS
Mixon has the patience to set up his blocks and burst to quickly charge through holes. He also uses his quick feet to make would-be tacklers miss in the backfield.
Mixon runs with balance and possesses natural forward lean to maximize yardage.
Once Mixon charges through the hole he has the quick feet to make cuts on the second level.
Mixon adjusts to the ball well in the air when he’s running routes out of the backfield and is a natural hands catcher.
Most running backs need to learn how to block at the next level, but Mixon is already adept in that area.
Mixon can return kickoffs effectively.
WEAKNESSES
Obviously we know about the concerns off the field, no need to mention more.
Mixon can get careless with the ball, he’s fumbled six times the last two years.
There honestly isn’t much to hate when watching Mixon’s tape, but if I want to nit-pick, he usually tends to bounce his runs to the outside and doesn’t look to cut back against the grain often. This makes him predictable, but he’s so effective doing it, it’s tough to knock. The other question that scouts have is his ability to create for himself behind a shoddy offensive line in the NFL.
CONCLUSION
During their press conference last week, Howie Roseman and Joe Douglas wouldn’t answer if Mixon would be on the Eagles’ draft board, but Josh Norris of NBC Sports is reporting that he is in fact on their board.
“Two sources familiar with the team’s draft plans confirmed” Joe Mixon is on the Eagles’ draft board https://t.co/KlQDXaJv20
— Josh Norris (@JoshNorris) April 21, 2017
Howard Eskin, meanwhile, is saying the opposite.
Multiple reports @ProFootballTalk, Ian Rappaport, RB Joe Mixon being invested for hitting woman in HS. I hear already off #eagles board
— Howard Eskin (@howardeskin) April 19, 2017
You could make the argument that out of the running backs coming out, Mixon might be the best fit for the Eagles considering his ability to run between the tackles and catch the ball out of the backfield. It’ll be interesting to see what the Birds do in the second round if they didn’t take a running back in the opening round and Mixon is still on the board.
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