Texans insider Aaron Wilson reports that RB Joe Mixon's ankle injury is "not considered long term or serious." Mixon briefly returned to Sunday night's game vs. the Bears after spraining the ankle but eventually gave way again to RB Cam Akers. It sounds like Mixon won't miss a ton of time, but his status for Week 3's meeting with the Vikings is uncertain. Wilson also reports that RB Dameon Pierce is "making fast progress" from his hamstring injury. If neither guy is available this weekend, Akers would be in for a significant workload. Houston also has RB Dare Ogunbowale on the active roster, but he's a passing-down specialist.
Texans RB Joe Mixon's right ankle got rolled up on in the third quarter of Sunday night's game vs. the Bears. He hobbled off the field and headed into the medical tent. We'll update Mixon's status when we know more. RB Dameon Pierce (hamstring) is inactive tonight, leaving the backfield to Cam Akers and Dare Ogunbowale.
Update: Mixon is officially questionable to return.
Update: Mixon returned later in the third quarter.
Texans RB Dameon Pierce (ankle) is inactive for tonight’s game vs. the Bears. RBs Cam Akers and Dare Ogunbowale are active behind workhorse Joe Mixon.
Texans RB Dameon Pierce (ankle) is listed as questionable for this Sunday night’s game vs. the Bears. He was added to the injury report on Thursday and then did not practice on Friday, so he’s seemingly on the wrong side of questionable. Pierce’s absence would give Cam Akers a crack at No. 2 RB duties. He’s obviously not a fantasy option behind a healthy Joe Mixon. But we’ll see if Akers can do enough on Sunday night to potentially move past Pierce on the depth chart.
Texans RB Cam Akers is a healthy scratch for today's opener vs. the Colts. Dameon Pierce will open the season as the No. 2 RB, despite being handily outplayed by Akers this preseason. We'd still expect both guys to be involved if RB Joe Mixon misses time this year.
The Texans on Sunday signed RB Cam Akers.
Texans OC Bobby Slowik gushed about RB Joe Mixon in Saturday's press conference. "He's a fun, fun person to coach," Slowik said with a big smile. "From Day one, showed up and absolutely worked his tail off. I mean you could see right away in Phase two, and in OTAs, like I understand now why he was as good as he was in Cincinnati. He puts in an immense amount of work. He loves football. He does not stop wanting to learn, wanting to grow. ... Workhorse. He’s an absolute workhorse, in every regard. Not just as a ball carrier. He embraces protections. He embraces the other things he can do outside of carrying the ball, as an eligible [receiver], as a decoy."
The Vikings are expected to re-sign RB Cam Akers, according to Charley Walters of the Pioneer Press. That depends, of course, on Akers passing a physical. He joined Minnesota last September but went down for the season in Week 9 with a torn left Achilles' tendon. Over his six games with the team, Akers reached 29% snap shares four times, with a high of 39% in Week 7. He worked ahead of Ty Chandler over that span but behind then-starter Alexander Mattison.
The Vikings fear a torn Achilles for RB Cam Akers, HC Kevin O'Connell said after Sunday's win over the Falcons. This would be Akers' left Achilles. He tore his right Achilles in July 2021, eventually making it back in January 2022. This latest injury would end Akers' 2023 campaign, leaving Minnesota's backfield to Alexander Mattison and Ty Chandler. We should get confirmation on the injury on Monday.
Update: The Monday MRi confirmed the injury. Unfortunately, this makes Akers droppable across fantasy formats, including dynasty.
Vikings RB Cam Akers suffered an ankle injury in the second half of Sunday's game vs. the Falcons and will not return. That leaves the backfield to Alexander Mattison and Ty Chandler. We'll update Akers' status when we know more.
A Monday MRI confirmed that Vikings QB Kirk Cousins tore his Achilles in the Week 8 win over the Packers, NFL Network reports. Cousins will miss the rest of the 2023 season. His contract is set to void in March, and Cousins will turn 36 in August, leaving his football future very uncertain. The Vikings, meanwhile, are left with QBs Jaren Hall and Sean Mannion for now. QB Nick Mullens, who at least has 655 NFL pass attempts under his belt, is eligible to come off IR next week. We'll see if Minnesota makes a move for a free-agent QB or swings a trade before tomorrow's trade deadline. Regardless, Cousins' absence is bad news for all of the team's skill-position players.
Vikings QB Kirk Cousins is feared to have torn his Achilles in Sunday's win over the Packers, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. It's typically easy for doctors to diagnose a torn Achilles without any imaging. We should get confirmation tomorrow, but Cousins' 2023 season is very likely over. His absence would leave Minnesota with QBs Jaren Hall and Sean Mannion. QB Nick Mullens is currently on IR with a back injury but is eligible to return. Regardless, Cousins' injury is horrible news for Minnesota's skill-position players.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison worked behind RB Cam Akers early in Sunday's win over the Packers. Akers logged 8 first-half carries to Mattison's 4, as well as the only RB target before halftime. Mattison dominated second-half work, however, taking 12 rushes to just one for Akers. Neither guy did much with their touches. Mattison finished just 16-31 rushing and caught his lone target for a mere 2 yards. Akers scored the lone rushing TD but averaged just 2.1 yards per carry across his 9 attempts. He also didn't see a second-half target. It's best to avoid this backfield in fantasy as much as you can.
Perhaps there’s been a changing of the guard in Minnesota. For the first time since joining the team via trade in late September, Vikings RB Cam Akers saw more volume than his teammate Alexander Mattison in Week 7 vs. the 49ers. Akers led the way with 13 total touches on Monday night to Mattison’s 11. Though neither player achieved double-digit PPR points, this is a potentially significant development worth keeping an eye on ahead of Week 8 vs. the Packers.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison controlled the backfield work in Sunday's win over the Bears. He handled 18 of 19 Minnesota RB carries and drew 7 of 8 RB targets. Mattison gained just 44 yards on the ground, though, averaging 2.4 yards per rush. His 7 targets ranked second on the team. Mattison caught four for 28 yards. Cam Akers logged just 1 carry for 8 yards and caught his lone target for 7 more. Akers had been creeping in on Mattison's playing time before this week, so that's a positive development for Mattison managers. A Week 7 matchup with the 49ers makes the whole backfield worth trying to avoid, though.
RB Cam Akers carried five times for 40 yards in Sunday's win over the Panthers, his first action with the Vikings. He added 2 receptions for 11 yards on 2 targets, one of just three Minnesota players who caught more than one pass in the game. Akers looks like the handcuff to RB Alexander Mattison but probably won't turn into a standalone fantasy play without a Mattison injury. Mattison rushed 17 times for 95 yards against Carolina and caught his only target for 3 yards.
The Vikings will go with the hot hand at RB vs. the Panthers today, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. RB Alexander Mattison "is still the starter," per Pelissero, but we could see "a lot of" RB Cam Akers. Mattison has been inefficient and mistake-prone through three games, so there's an opening for Akers. Mattison remains the preferred fantasy play today, but his floor is much lower than it's been the first three weeks.
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