The Facts: With one season left on his contract, Mixon represents an interesting case. The RB plowed down the stretch of the season and showed he could be a force on the ground. Paying RBs, however, is always a tricky prospect in the NFL. For his part, despite early-season struggles, Mixon doesn't want to flee Cincinnati. "I want to be a Bengal for life," Mixon said. "I haven't really thought about an extension. Right now is definitely the time to start getting into it. The ball is in their court, not mine."

Diehards Line: At the midway point of the 2019 season, the smart money would have guessed Mixon would have been angling to get out of Cincinnati ASAP. The Bengals struggled to use Mixon, couldn't get him in space at all. Through eight games, he earned just 320 rushing yards and zero TDs on 101 attempts. Then came the Week 9 bye. Following the week off, head coach Zac Taylor finally realized underutilizing your most talented healthy weapon could be considered a criminal offense. Through the final eight weeks, Mixon earned 177 carries for 817 rushing yards (4.6 YPC) and five TDs. Over that stretch, he generated four games of 110-plus yards rushing, including galloping all over the Browns for 163 yards in Sunday's finale. The Bengals still underutilized Mixon in the passing game. Giving the RB just 45 targets (35 catches) doesn't do justice to his ability to burn linebackers and safeties in open space. But if the Bengals want something to hang their hat on, Mixon is it.