Head coach DeMeco Ryans hopes to take a confident team to Arrowhead Stadium that can compete with the Chiefs for 60 minutes and walk away with an upset victory. The Texans are 8.5-point underdogs in the game that is scheduled to kick off at 4:30 p.m. ET and will be televised by ABC and ESPN. However, they may be without top running back Joe Mixon and linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair.
Mixon did not practice Thursday due to his ankle injury and is listed as questionable. What makes it particularly troubling is that Mixon participated in a limited manner Wednesday but he could not return to the practice field the following day. Al-Shaair was a limited participant Thursday with a knee injury and he is also listed as questionable for Saturday’s game.
Mixon played a huge role for the Texans in their Wild Card victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. Mixon carried the ball 25 times for 106 yards against the Chargers and scored a touchdown. His contribution helped take some of the pressure off second-year quarterback CJ Stroud, who did not have to carry the offense in large part because of Mixon’s contribution. Stroud completed 22 of 33 passes for 282 yards and threw 1 TD pass and just 1 interception.
Al-Shaair played a key role for the Houston defense as he contributed 6 tackles to the 32-12 victory.
Mixon’s presence is vital to Texans’ offense
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The Texans have a huge task at hand in battling head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes. While Kansas City has not been as prolific on offense the last two seasons as they had been earlier, they have the experience and know-how to light up the scoreboard in the most important games.
More than that, the Texans will need a balanced offense to have a chance at penetrating the dangerous Chiefs defense that finished 4th in points allowed during the regular season, allowing 19.2 points per game.
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Mixon rushed for 1,016 yards on 245 carries with 11 touchdowns during the regular season. He averaged 4.1 yards per carry and had 8 carries of 20 yards or more. Mixon also demonstrated that he was a capable receiver for Stroud, catching 36 passes for 309 yards with 1 touchdown.
If Mixon is unable to play, the pressure will ratchet up on Stroud and head coach DeMeco Ryans. Dare Ogunbowale is listed as the backup to Mixon, and he was quite limited during the regular season. He carried the ball 30 times for 112 yards and he did not get into the end zone.
