The Houston Texans and the 31 other teams in the league have some tough decisions. Roster cutdown day is on Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET, and teams must get down to 53 players.
The Texans have had some serious competitions at multiple spots, but the latest injury news is good news for running back Dameon Pierce. According to KPRC 2 Houston's Aaron Wilson, RB Joe Mixon is going to miss the first four games of the 2025 NFL season, landing on the non-football injury list. Wilson added that Mixon's rehab process has been called "tough and complicated" per league sources, and the team stated, "We will provide further updates at an appropriate time."
With Mixon now missing the entire month of September, Pierce seems to be a lock to make the roster.
This means #Texans Pro Bowl running back Joe Mixon has to miss at least first four games of regular season. Rehab process has been called 'tough and complicated' by league sources @KPRC2
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) August 25, 2025
Team says 'We will provide further updates at an appropriate time' https://t.co/9G24yqa8YY
Texans RB Dameon Pierce is a Winner of Joe Mixon Injury News
Mixon has been dealing with a foot injury this offseason that has kept him sidelined. There's no timeline on when he will return, which means the Texans will likely keep Pierce on the roster.
The Florida product has a fourth-round pick by Houston in 2022, but has seen his rushing numbers decrease with each campaign. From 2022 to 2024, his rushing yards went from 939 to 416 to 293.
This offseason, Houston signed Nick Chubb and also drafted Woody Marks in the 2025 NFL draft. The Texans also have Dare Ogunbowale, Jawhar Jordan, and British Brooks in the backfield, but Pierce has been the most productive at the NFL level from that bunch.
Chubb has also dealt with multiple serious knee injuries, so the Texans won't put all their eggs in his basket. Keeping Pierce around seems the wise decision to keep the continuity and have a player who's been around the team for years.
Pierce is going into the final year of his rookie deal and likely isn't in the team's plans for the future. Despite that, it doesn't mean he won't have a spot on the team this fall. The Texans will keep at least three running backs on the active roster, and this injury makes it appear that Pierce will hold one of those spots for the 2025 season. He's a physical, downhill runner who averages 4.1 yards per carry in his career.