Although the news that the Texans added Nick Chubb to their backfield has excited some fans, the news may not be as exciting or labelled as a ‘blockbuster’ like it may have been in the 2018, 2019 days, and paired with Joe Mixon for Texas, their names alone, and fan nostalgia may be causing the duo to be too overhyped heading into next season.
Joe Mixon and Nick Chubb are both household names when it comes to mid to late 2010s NFL, but with their new partnership in Houston getting fans excited and hopefully for improvement next season, the nostalgia and memories of what the two were like in their primes may be getting in the way of the reality of the duo.
Chubb, who played his last NFL game back in December of last year before suffering a broken foot which side lined him for the remainder of the season, looked the most likely free agent to stay unsigned due to injury issues, and purely for the fact that he never replicated his form. The former second round pick in 2018 let Cleveland not have put up close to the number he did in his first years, and has recently not been the most productive, and not as desirable for teams among the NFL. Having played only eight games last season rushing for 332 yards and three touchdowns, his 1,500 yard, 12 touchdown seasons in 2019 and 2022 were never really looking like a possibility, and with his new home in Houston, fans seem to be forgetting about the last two years, and have been blinded by the nostalgia.
It is no doubt that the two will have an impact, and both bring different types of play to the Texans new backfield, but with free agents like Cam Akers and J.K Dobbins available, Houston could have picked up a talent with much more to prove, and not add another veteran with withering injury problems, and nothing left in the tank. Mixon on the other hand showed he was the man for the Houston backfield, putting up just over 1,000 yards with 11 touchdowns, but similar to Chubb, never looked like replicating what he did in Cincinnati, and with age will only slow down.
The thought of Chubb and Mixon on the same team is one of those situations nobody would ever imagine five or six years ago, but with both now sharing a running back room, fans may be blinded by the names alone, and could set for a huge disappointment. What Texans fans need to remember is they are not who they were, and with Chubb an inconsistent back as he is, the hype and excitement may become a dulling reality for those blinded by nostalgia.
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