Joe Mixon not done recruiting free agents to Bengals; going after Tyrann Mathieu, Jordy Nelson next

Joe Mixon tried recruiting Sammy Watkins to the Bengals. Instead, the wide receiver signed with the Chiefs.

Then he tried getting Richard Sherman in stripes. Sherman signed with the 49ers.

But Mixon is committed to the recruiting grind.

His next two targets are players who were released by their teams this week in the lead up to free agency. They are former Cardinals safety Tyrann Mathieu and former Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson.

I hate to burst Joe’s bubble, AGAIN, but, it’s highly unlikely either of these guys are coming to the Bengals.

Nelson might even become a division rival as he’s set to visit the Ravens this week. Mathieu is getting interest from many teams and like Mixon, other players are trying to recruit him to their squads.

New Giants linebacker Alec Ogletree is on the same mission as Mixon.

So far, Mathieu, maybe more commonly referred to as Honey Badger, hasn’t committed to any visits, but he has interest.

With the Bengals looking to crunch the numbers to re-sign their own free agents like Tyler Eifert and Russell Bodine, it’s safe to say neither Mathieu nor Nelson will be joining the Bengals.

But like I’ve said before, I love the enthusiasm from Mixon — who was also mad when the team let Chris Smith sign with the Browns — and he should keep up his work campaigning for the team to get better. Both Mathieu and Nelson would make the Bengals better, but the team isn’t going to be throwing big money at those players to get them to Cincinnati.