CINCINNATI —Bengals running back Joe Mixon has been named the team's 2018 Most Valuable Player, according the the Cincinnati Chapter of the Pro Football Writers of America.
This marks the first MVP for Mixon in his second season out of Oklahoma. He enters the season finale leading the AFC in rushing with 1063 yards.
He is the first Bengals running back to cross the 1,000-yard mark since Jeremy Hill in 2014. He also has 42 receptions for 294 yards, and he leads the team with nine total touchdowns (eight rushing, one receiving). Mixon recorded those numbers despite missing two games with a knee injury.
“Mixon became the focal point of the Bengals' offense, particularly as injury ravaged the skill positions during the season,” said Cincinnati Enquirer Bengals beat writer Paul Dehner Jr. “Despite all the attention, he still managed to produce at an efficient rate while taking on a significant workload.”
Other past MVP winners have been QB Jon Kitna (2002-03), HB Rudi Johnson (’04), QB Carson Palmer (’05), OT Willie Anderson (’06), WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh (’07-08), CBs Leon Hall and Johnathan Joseph (’09), OT Andrew Whitworth (’10), QB Andy Dalton (’11 and ’15), DT Geno Atkins (’12 and ’17), LB Vontaze Burfict (’13), HB Jeremy Hill (’14) and A.J. Green (’16).