Texans’ Joe Mixon reacts to Rex Ryan’s wild comment about the Chargers getting a bye

As the winners of AFC South, v Houston Texas will be the host Los Angeles Chargers in the Wild Card round this weekend. While a 31-2 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 16 left Houston Super Bowl aspirations on life supportone commenter doesn’t think so he has a chance against Los Angeles.

Former NFL coach turned studio analyst Ryan said dismissed the cheesy attitude, saying the first-round matchup between LA and the Texans represents a bye week for the Chargers. Naturally, the press rushed to reclaim Houston Joe Mikonopinion on a harsh statement. “Look bro, I mean, I’m just here to let my helmet and shoulder pads do the talking … I’m not going to comment,” Mixon responded, according to Landry Locker on X .

There was a time when Ryan was a highly regarded defensive coordinator in the NFL. He then spent eight seasons as a head coach, a stretch that included two AFC Championship Game appearances with the New York Jets in 2009 and 2010. And while he will go down in Jets annals, the reality is that Ryan hasn’t worn the headset for any franchise since 2016 .

While Ryan would like to rejoin the Jets as a coach, and even interviewed for the vacant position of head coach of the teamFor the past eight years, Ryan has been a football analyst for ESPN. His job is to produce soundtracks that the media write about, discuss and dissect. Which, in fact, is what we’re doing here. So it works.

Fortunately, Mixon didn’t take the bait. However, Ryan’s point of view is not so difficult to understand.

Veteran RB Joe Mixon had a strong season for the Texans in 2024

While the Texans boast some serious talent throughout the team, Houston is undoubtedly limping into the postseason after losing two of its last three. Over the Texans’ last five games in 2024, the team averaged just 17.4 points per contest. Houston has scored 30 or more points just twice in 17 games this season,

On the other hand, the Chargers finished the season strong, winning three straight games and averaging 36 points per contest in that span. Despite LA playing in a strong division where three of four teams made the playoffs, the Jim Harbaugh-led squad held on, finishing 11-6 with a 4-2 record against AFC West teams.

While the Texans dominated their division with a 5-1 record, that should be expected given that three other teams in the AFC South failed to reach the postseason. The Texans finished 10-7 despite a late-year stumble, while the rest of the division’s teams went a combined 15-36.

While Houston lost in a wide out Tank Dell to a season-ending injury in Week 16, which hampered the offense, he has been absent in just three of the last five games in which the scoring went down. Stroud, the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year, suffered a sophomore slump.

Mixon, however, enjoyed a bounce-back season after being surprisingly short traded to the Texans by the Cincinnati Bengals ahead of the 2024 campaign Produced his fifth career 1,000-yard rushing season with 11 scores in 14 games.