Joe Mixon reacts to 'shocking' trade from Bengals to Texans

Joe Mixon is excited for the opportunity to continue his career in Houston after spending his first seven seasons in Cincinnati. However, he was still extremely surprised by the trade that sent him from the Bengals to the Texans in exchange for a seventh-round pick.

“It was definitely shocking,” Mixon said of the trade at his introductory press conference with the Texans. “I took that 24 to 48 hours to hurt. It took a while. I’m still having emotional feelings about it. That’s a place where I could forever feel like that’s home for me.

“I’m just very grateful that the fans, they embraced me the way that they did, and I just love everything about the way that the fans were. We brought the city of Cincinnati, we got it back lit again, and I plan on bringing that same thing [to Houston]."

While Mixon was understandably jarred by the trade, he's also very bullish about his fit as a member of the Texans.

“I definitely feel like I’m here, I fit the culture and what they do and what they want to bring," Mixon said. "It’s definitely a humbling time to be here, and I’m definitely ready and excited for this new beginning for sure.

"The things they’ve got cooking here, the city, they should definitely be exciting because it’s nothing but exciting things to be excited about. I think what we’ve got here cooking right now is on the right track, and there’s a lot of things to look forward to.”

Before leaving Cincinnati, Mixon wrote his name all over the team's history books, and now he will look to do the same thing in Houston. Who knows? Maybe the Bengals and Texans will end up meeting in the playoffs next season. That would be quite an interesting matchup for Mixon.