Joe Mixon and his agent say the NFL fined the Houston Texans $25,000 for comments he failed to make following the AFC divisional round loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday .
In a game where calls against the Texans for penalties against Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes came under scrutiny, Mixon then gave his thoughts on the officiating.
“Everyone knows how it goes here. You can never leave it in the hands of the refs,” Mixon said. “The whole world sees, man, what it is. It is what it is. At the end of the day, you can never leave it in the hands of the referees. But it’s all good.”
Former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver TJ Houshmandzadeh agreed with Mixon, who posted on X: “Why play the game if every 50/50 call goes with the Chiefs. These officials are (trash) and biased. “
Why play the game if every 50/50 call goes with the Chiefs. These officials are 🗑🗑🗑🗑 and biased
– TJ Houshmandzadeh (@housh84) January 18, 2025
According to ESPN’s DJ Bien-Aime, a Sports Illustrated article originally attributed Houshmandzadeh’s comment to Mixon, who was cited in the $25,000 fine.
Mixon posted a post Wednesday about the NFL’s apparent mistake, saying, “I’m being fined by the @nfl for what someone else said. What’s next? They fined me fined Connor McDavid for cross-checking an opponent during an @nhl game!”
I receive a fine from @nfl for what someone else said. What’s next? They fine me for Connor McDavid cross-checking an opponent on a @nhl game! 🤦🏽♂️
— ⚡️Primetime!!!⚡️ (@Joe_MainMixon) January 22, 2025
Mixon’s agent told ESPN that he will appeal the fine to “defend” Mixon and that he will “explore all other legal avenues to rectify this situation.”
After Mixon went public on Wednesday, Pro Football Talk reported that the NFL re-enacted the $25,000 fine and quoted the running back as commenting: “Everybody knows how it goes around here.” You can never leave it in the hands of the referees. The whole world sees, man” after the Chiefs game.
This quote was not mentioned in Mixon’s beautiful initial letter.
So let me get this straight, the NFL is fining me $25,000 for something I didn’t even say. Call them out on this, and their response was STILL fining me for something that isn’t even a violation without even overturning the first one. Where is the responsibility? Just respect the players.
Cold 🌎
— ⚡️Primetime!!!⚡️ (@Joe_MainMixon) January 22, 2025
Mixon was previously fined $11,255 after his win against the Los Angeles Chargers for “unnecessary roughness.”
