:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/53648729/499102592.0.jpg)
The Bengals are doing their due diligence on one of the 2017 NFL Draft’s most infamous prospects.
After meeting privately with Joe Mixon prior to Oklahoma pro day on Tuesday, the Bengals are now bringing him to Cincinnati, using one of the team’s 30 prospect stadium visits on the former Oklahoma running back.
The Bengals are hosting Oklahoma RB Joe Mixon for a visit, according to a source. Mixon was not invited to the combine so the Bengals want a chance to talk with him extensively about his character.
Jim Owczarski also had the news:
Follows up the team's reported private meeting with the RB prior to his pro day in Norman. #Bengals #NFLDraft
— Jim Owczarski (@JimOwczarski) March 11, 2017
Mixon was not invited to the NFL Combine because he punched a female student at Oklahoma back in 2014, his freshman year. That incident, fittingly, caused his draft stock to tumble. Potentially the most talented running back in this year’s draft class, Mixon is currently expected to be a Day 2 pick.
It remains to be seen which team wants to take a chance on him, considering his past. But, if the Bengals choose to do so, the team could use its second round pick, the 41st overall selection in the draft, to select Mixon. It’s possible the Bengals could attempt to wait until the third round to pick him, but, he could be off-the-board at that point.
There was a time when it was thought Mixon could fall out of the draft all together, but as teams realize how talented he is, it seems his stock is once again climbing. At least 24 teams were said to meet with him at his pro day on Wednesday in Norman.
Mixon's 40-yard dash time at his pro day was 4.43 seconds. That would have been the fourth-fastest time among running backs participating at the NFL Combine and is faster than Leonard Fournette, Dalvin Cook, Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara ran it in Indianapolis. He also had a 35 inch vertical jump, 9-foot-10-inch broad jump, 21 reps in the bench press, and had a 4.25 second 20-yard shuttle time.
The Bengals are likely doing their best to determine if Mixon has really grown up and moved past the unacceptable act he committed in his freshman year of college. If the team gets a good feel on him, it’s possible he could be drafted to become a Bengal.