Caserio's cryptic remarks about Joe Mixon's foot surgery and the team's limited information cast further shadows on the running back's mysterious absence.
Speaking to the media from Indianapolis this week, Houston Texans general manager Nick Caserio revealed a concerning truth about running back Joe Mixon and his mysterious foot injury. In short, it appears as though Mixon did and/or knew something that the team wasn't the most privy to.
Interviewer (identity unclear): "Have you been able to examine or meet with Joe Mixon? And what do you see for his future?"
Nick Caserio: "Yeah, we've talked to Joe and his representatives, so, honestly, it's day to day. We've had conversations, trying to get a little bit more information. I think he had a surgery here this offseason in some capacity. So, trying to get some follow after that. Again, I've said this multiple times, I'm not trying to be evasive. It's a moving target."
Mixon's Procedure and Recovery Was a Mystery the Whole Time
The sentence, "I think he had a surgery here this offseason in some capacity" should set off multiple alarms if you've been following this story since news first broke of Mixon's impending absence last Summer. Specifically, the "I think" part.
Mixon dealing with a foot issue is not the red flag. It's the fact that the general manager of the franchise he's employed by just essentially said out loud that the team was in the dark to a certain degree about how effectively their star rusher in Mixon was managing a severe bodily ailment away from team activities or oversight.
That is deeply concerning for anyone who's looking for a reason for optimistic belief in a Mixon comeback in 2026.
That also brings into question if there's a lingering trust issue between Mixon's camp and Houston's front office, considering the public representation of the cover messaging all season was full of holes on both sides (potentially caused by information that was either withheld or misconstrued along the way).
An example of this could be found in how Caserio and the team was constantly trying to nail down a return timeframe for the eighth-year rusher, but the availability of information made the prospect a cumbersome one. Caserio continued his interview,
Interviewer (Landry Locker): When did ya'll know about the possibility of Joe missing some time?
Caserio: “We knew last spring to the summer, there’s a chance he was going to miss a period of time. Honestly, Landry, I don't think we knew the extent of how long it was going to be. It was touch and go. Again I’m not trying to create any problems, it was just a moving target.”
The cryptic nature of Caserio's verbiage throughout the season regarding Mixon's availability finally makes sense when you consider the totality of the evidence.
The perception of a "moving goalpost" whenever Caserio was asked about any updates on the matter was a reflection of the lack of insight into Mixon's recovery practices in the 2025 offseason.
It's not that the team was trying to conduct a massive conspiracy, it's that they seemingly had no clue as to what the next phase of Mixon's recovery phase would be, based on the lack of available information on hand.
Additionally, KPRC2's Aaron Wilson mentioned on his YouTube channel that Mixon had to get "stem cells from overseas" as part of his recovery process.
Regardless, one of the weirdest situations in the NFL just got a lot weirder.
Texans Looking for RB Help in Free Agency
However, the Texans don't have much more time to wait on updates with the former Bengal, as NFL free agency is fast approaching and they are reportedly in the market for high end running back help.
This has all the making of a parting of ways between the two sides. It's unfortunate that his seems to be the end of Mixon's time in Houston after only one season, but these things tend to happen sometimes.
Still, very weird nonetheless.