Bengals pull surprising move at running back

The news of Mixon’s release broke concurrently with reports that Cincinnati was signing running back Zack Moss to be Mixon’s replacement. Moss’ deal is said to be worth $8M over two years.

The Bengals selected Mixon in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft. The 27-year-old was coming off his fourth 1,000-yard season with the team. He rushed for 1,034 yards with nine touchdowns on 257 carries last season.

Moss led the Colts with 794 rushing yards across 14 games. He filled in admirably for Jonathan Taylor, who missed seven games last season due to injury. Moss was second on the team with five rushing TDs behind Taylor’s seven.

Mixon becomes the latest star running back forced to find a new home. But the list of teams in need of a running back has continued to shrink since the free agency period officially began. Names like Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs, Austin Ekeler and Tony Pollard have all landed in their next destinations.

But given Mixon’s consistent production and relatively clean bill of health, several teams will likely be in contact with the former Bengals star real soon.