Ryan Wilson is looking for a fit that would send Joe Mixon to Baltimore, and he sees the veteran running back as a possible answer for the Ravens nearly two months after the main free-agency rush. In a CBS Sports discussion of the best remaining free agents, Wilson suggested Mixon for the Ravens and said a healthy version could help Lamar Jackson.
Mixon turns 30 in July and spent seven seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals before signing with the Houston Texans in 2024. His 2025 season was wiped out by a leg injury, but before that he had back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons and earned a Pro Bowl nod. Wilson said that history still matters because Mixon can catch out of the backfield and could give Baltimore something it does not currently have in the same package.
“I love the idea of Joe Mixon going to the Baltimore Ravens, and in that way, you get a two-for-one,” Wilson said, noting that the Ravens could use him at a “30-40% clip” rather than as a full-time feature back. He added that a healthy Mixon could come in behind Derrick Henry, “clean up,” and provide Jackson with another option in the passing game. Wilson also said Baltimore would not need to ask for more than “15, 20, 25 snaps a game” if Mixon returned close to his prime form.
The fit discussion comes with obvious caveats. Baltimore already has Henry, with Justice Hill entrenched as his backup, while Rasheen Ali and fifth-round rookie Adam Randall are expected to compete for the No. 3 spot on the depth chart. Hill, Ali and Randall are all considered adept pass-catchers, which is exactly why Wilson framed Mixon as a “two-for-one” rather than a replacement for anyone already in the room.
The same CBS Sports segment also turned to another former Raven, with Wilson suggesting Pittsburgh sign Kyle Van Noy. Van Noy spent the past three seasons in Baltimore and is now 35 years old, with Wilson saying he can play off the edge and off-ball linebacker, serve as the green dot caller and bring locker-room leadership. That backdrop underscored the point of the exercise: this was not a prediction of what will happen, but a look at which veterans might still make sense for teams trying to squeeze one more productive stretch out of proven names.
