The Seattle Seahawks have a running back problem. Kenneth Walker III left for the Kansas City Chiefs and is thriving. Zach Charbonnet is coming off a serious injury and isn’t back in the fold just yet.
Jadarian Price landed on injured reserve, and active running backs Emmanuel Wilson and George Holani don’t really move the needle. But that’s why the report that Seattle was to sign Joe Mixon to a free-agent deal was so intriguing.
However, in a plot twist, ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that the Seahawks are not actually signing Mixon. But why are they backing out of the free-agent deal? Thanks to a physical, the Seahawks are not actually going to sign Mixon.
Why Seahawks are not actually signing Joe Mixon
“As it turns out, the Seahawks decided not to sign veteran running back Joe Mixon to their practice squad after he underwent a physical for the team, per league sources,” Schefter reports. “Mixon will remain a free agent.”
Mixon missed all of 2025 due to an undisclosed injury, and the Houston Texans missed him badly. But his reported deal with the Seahawks seemed to indicate things were looking up for Mixon amid a return to the NFL.
However, whatever the Seahawks saw in the physical, they did not like, and they have decided to back out of the free agent deal with Mixon.
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The former Cincinnati Bengals RB is still a free agent and can sign with any team this season. But the physical not going well, at least in the Seahawks’ eyes, is not a good sign for Mixon to find a landing spot this season.
Similar to how the Baltimore Ravens backed out of the Maxx Crosby trade this past offseason, the Seahawks are backing out of this free-agent deal with Mixon.
Seattle could be on the lookout for more running back help, but this report from Schefter makes it clear that, despite initial reports that he was planning to sign with the Seahawks, Mixon will not be coming to Seattle this season.
