The Houston Texans nearly suffered a serious injury when star running back Joe Mixon went down after a hip drop tackle. Mixon was shown on the ground for a long time and appeared to be in significant pain.

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After the tackle that brought Mixon to a standstill, he was shown leaving the field under his own power. Luckily, he has since returned to the lineup.

The first scene was quite scary as Mixon was on the pitch for a long time. The coaching staff came over immediately to look after him and things looked pretty serious.

When Mixon left the field, he immediately went to the bench, which was a good sign. Had he gone into the blue medical tent or locker room, the Texans might have had to eject him.

Mixon was fantastic this season, rushing for 887 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also did that in 10 games. Mixon has struggled with an ankle injury this season that has kept him out of action.

Despite the ankle injury, Mixon returned to action to help boost the Texans’ offense. Houston has had an ups and downs season so far and is hoping for its ninth win of the season.

The Texans want to hold on to the AFC South, which would happen if they beat the Miami Dolphins and the Indianapolis Colts lose to the Denver Broncos on Sunday. Should Houston clinch the AFC South crown, they won’t have to worry about beating the other playoff contenders for a wild-card playoff spot.

If Mixon had lost at any point in the game, this task would have become riskier, and he avoided serious injury after the Dolphins’ hip drop tackle/

The Dolphins are also chasing their seventh win against the Texans on Sunday. Miami is in the hunt for a coveted wild-card playoff spot, but still has an uphill battle ahead of it. They currently trail the Colts and Denver Broncos in the wildcard playoff race.

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A big win against the Texans would help them move up the list, but the Dolphins are already struggling. As of this writing, they trail the Texans by a score of 10-6. Miami lost two starting offensive players, and the Texans defense is taking full advantage.

The Texans forced a fumble and all but silenced the Dolphins’ offense throughout the day.

For more information on the Texans and Dolphins, visit Newsweek Sports.