Report: Cincinnati Bengals plan to release Joe Mixon

For the first time in his NFL career, Joe Mixon could be set to have a new home.

According to Matthew Berry of NBC Sports, the Cincinnati Bengals plan to release the star running back, bringing an end to his tenure with the team after seven seasons. Berry said he heard of Mixon’s fate while spending time at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis this past week.

“I was told Joe Mixon would be released,” Berry wrote.

Mixon, 27, is set to enter the final year of a four-year extension he inked with Cincinnati in 2020. He agreed to restructure the deal this past July, taking a near $3 million salary decrease from what he made in 2022. Mixon said at the time he agreed to the reworked deal to help the Bengals field a Super Bowl caliber team.

“I see the task at hand and what we’re trying to build and in order to keep other players here and pieces here, sometimes you have to sacrifice,” Mixon said. “I felt like this year was the year to sacrifice on the Super Bowl team we can potentially be.”

Mixon is owed a $3 million roster bonus on March 18.

The Bengals failed to make the playoffs this past season, going 9-8 with quarterback Joe Burrow missing seven games due to a hand injury. Mixon logged his fourth-career 1,000-yard season on the ground, rushing for 1,034 yards on 4.0 yards per carry and nine touchdowns. He added 52 receptions for 376 yards and three scores through the air.

Mixon earned his first and only Pro Bowl nod in 2021, rushing for a career-high 1,205 yards and 13 touchdowns. He helped lead the Bengals to Super Bowl LVI that season.

More on the 2024 NFL offseason, free agency

The NFL 2024 calendar year begins at 4 p.m. ET on March 13. At that time, contracts running through 2023 officially run out, making those players free agents. Prior to the beginning of free agency, teams will have a chance to designate one franchise or transition tag player, starting on Feb. 20 at 4 p.m. ET and ending on March 5. Beginning March 11 through March 13 teams can enter into a legal negotiation with players who are set to become unrestricted free agents.

In addition to NFL free agency, the new year also marks the beginning of all trades being made official by the league office. April 19 marks the deadline to sign restricted free agents to offer sheets. On April 24, the deadline for teams to match restricted free agent offers sheets hits. Following the restricted free agent deadline follows the 2024 NFL Draft, which runs from April 25-27.