Just before he was set to be released by Cincinnati, Joe Mixon has instead been traded to Houston.
The Bengals are trading Mixon to the Texans after initially planning to release him, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
There’s no word on what the Texans are sending the Bengals for Mixon. It won’t be much, but sometimes a team is willing to give up a late-round pick for the certainty of getting a player before he has a chance to sign elsewhere in free agency.
Mixon started all 17 games for the Bengals last season and had 257 carries for 1,034 yards and nine touchdowns, plus 52 catches for 376 yards and three more touchdowns. The Bengals will save $6.1 million on their salary cap by trading him, the same amount they would have saved if they had cut him.
NFL trades cannot become official until the start of the league year tomorrow.