Bengals Fans Speak: Where Would you Draft Joe Mixon?

Joe Mixon enters his second season as a popular fantasy football draft option? Based on our Twitter polls, how much do you like him?

Recently, I wrote about Joe Mixon’s current average draft position in fantasy drafts. Mixon, who at the time was going as the first pick of the third round, has hovered around the same value for the last month. He’s now going as the last pick of the second round. I believed at the time – and still do – that Mixon was going too low in drafts. However, I wanted to hear what you thought of Mixon from a fantasy perspective.

About a week ago, I put four separate polls on the Stripe Hype Twitter account (@stripehype). The first poll tried to gauge how you felt about Mixon’s current ADP. Then the next three tried to get a sense of how you felt about Mixon compared to other running backs around his ADP.

Overall, I was thrilled with the results. In general, you agreed with me that Joe Mixon is a great value in fantasy drafts right now and will perform as an elite RB. In response to the first poll, the majority of you said you would take Joe Mixon at his current ADP – in the late second to early third round. A few of you agreed with me, and said you’d take him in the early second, while a similar amount said you would take him, but only in the late third round or after. Only 2 of you said you wouldn’t draft him at all.

On the surface, this didn’t quite mesh with my earlier article, since the majority of you wouldn’t take him above his ADP in the late second round. I still believe he’s worth an early second round pick. However, once I brought other similar running backs into the fold, the results started to align with my earlier piece.

Of the four backs I chose, they are currently going between the second round and third round. In order of ADP, they are Devonta Freeman, Jerick McKinnon, Joe Mixon, and Jordan Howard (in PPR). My first poll comparing the four was who has the most upside, and Mixon won easily. He received almost 50% of the votes, 30 points clear of Freeman and Howard. McKinnon surprisingly finished in last, with only 8% of the vote.

The second poll asked the opposite question in which of the four has the most downside. Unsurprisingly, McKinnon won the poll with 41% of the vote. However, the results of the second poll were the closest, as Freeman, Mixon, and Howard were all within 4 points of each other.

The last poll was the most straightforward and most important. It asked which of the four running backs you want the most. This poll thrilled me, as a stunning 66% of you chose Mixon. Freeman was a clear second at 25%, while Howard and McKinnon were far off Mixon’s votes. Of any poll, this was the most decisive.

As far as the last three polls are concerned, I don’t think I disagree with any of the results. Because of his potential to take on a bellcow role, I think Mixon could have a monster year. Therefore, his potential is definitely the highest. Even though I do like McKinnon’s upside, he is a massively unproven runner who goes to a 6-10 team in San Francisco. He definitely deserved to win the downside poll.

Next: AJ Goes Under the Microscope

Overall, these polls results show that you agree with me: Joe Mixon is undervalued in fantasy drafts right now. Most of you seem comfortable drafting Mixon in the second round. If he goes in the second, he could easily return value on that pick with his upside. Regardless, I’m excited that many Bengals fans are backing their guy in Joe Mixon in fantasy drafts.