Sources – Bengals release Joe Mixon, reach deal with Zack Moss،
CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Bengals are taking a big step forward at running back.
Longtime starter Joe Mixon has been released and will be replaced by former Indianapolis Colts running back Zack Moss, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter Monday night.
Moss and Cincinnati have agreed to terms on a two-year deal worth $8 million, including a $4.525 million payment in the first year, a source told Schefter. This decision resulted in Mixon's release.
Mixon, a second-round pick out of Oklahoma in 2017, was the Bengals' primary running back over the past seven seasons. In 2023, he has rushed for 1,034 yards and 9 touchdowns and has 1,410 total yards from scrimmage.
Moss, 26, is coming off an exceptional season. He proved to be a backup capable of propelling the Colts' running game when he was called upon during two separate absences for All-Pro fullback Jonathan Taylor.
After suffering a broken arm during summer workouts, Moss began the season as the Colts' starter while Taylor was on the physically unable to perform list, getting the kind of opportunities he rarely took advantage of for two seasons with the Buffalo Bills. Moss recorded each of his three best rushing performances since being traded to the Colts in 2022, including a career-best 165-yard effort against the Tennessee Titans last October.
With Taylor out of the lineup, Moss' strong start made him the NFL's third-leading rusher through five weeks. He finished with 794 rushing yards and 5 rushing touchdowns in 14 games, while missing two games late in the season with a shoulder injury. He also demonstrated his abilities as a receiver, catching a career-high 27 passes for 192 yards and 2 touchdowns.
The Colts' decision to give Taylor a long-term, $42 million extension last season directly impacted Moss' future due to the additional amount the Colts would invest in the running back position. .
A third-round pick out of Utah in 2020, Moss averaged 4.3 yards per carry during his career while totaling 2,076 yards and scoring 18 total touchdowns with the Colts and Bills.
Last July, Mixon and the Bengals agreed to an amended contract that reduced his salary and salary cap hit for the 2023 season. Mixon's current deal also included a $3 million bonus due March 18, which was an unofficial deadline for Cincinnati to take action on his contract.
In seven seasons with the Bengals, Mixon started in 88 of his 97 appearances. He was named to the Pro Bowl in 2021, had four 1,000-yard rushing seasons and threw a touchdown pass in a Super Bowl LVI loss that capped Cincinnati's best playoff run in addition to three decades.
Moss will look to bolster a Bengals rushing attack that lacked explosiveness last season. Before Week 18, when Cincinnati was eliminated from the playoffs, the Bengals ranked 27th in the NFL in running back runs of 12 yards or more, according to ESPN Stats & Information. An explosive running game that the Bengals wanted at the start of the season never materialized.
In 2023, Mixon and Moss had nearly identical rushing rates for 10 or more yards, according to ESPN Stats & Information (10.5% for Mixon versus 10.4% for Moss). But the $5.8 million in cap savings the Bengals will realize by cutting Mixon will offset Moss' $4.525 million first-year salary.
ESPN's Stephen Holder contributed to this report.
