Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon expressed interest in having the team begin talks on a contract extension at the end of last season.
The Bengals apparently have taken his words to heart and began conversations about a new deal, according to team director of player personnel Duke Tobin.
“Joe’s obviously a guy that’s shown a lot of ability,” Tobin said on 700 WLW of Mixon, who is entering the final season of his rookie contract.
“He’s in a year that he can be extended, and he is a guy that we visited with. We’ll go through those discussions and see if there is a fit or a match for a long-term contract with him, obviously a guy we value quite a bit. The great thing about Joe is he goes about it the right way. … He’s the type of guy you want to lock up to a long-term deal. We’ll see if we can find the commonality to get that done over time here.”
Mixon, who is slated to make $1.2 million in base salary in 2020, is coming off back-to-back 1,100-yard seasons. He was a workhorse the second half of the 2019 campaign with 194 carries over the final nine games.
The 23-year-old has rushed for 2,931 yards and 17 touchdowns and added 108 receptions for 870 yards and four scores in 44 career games with the Bengals.
Mixon dropped in the 2017 NFL Draft out of Oklahoma because of an incident caught on video in which he was shown punching a female student. He was still selected in the second round of the draft.
