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Los Angeles Chargers rumors: Joe Mixon coming for pre-draft visit

By Brad Berreman

Nov 19, 2016; Morgantown, WV, USA; Oklahoma Sooners running back Joe Mixon (25) runs for a touchdown during the second quarter against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 19, 2016; Morgantown, WV, USA; Oklahoma Sooners running back Joe Mixon (25) runs for a touchdown during the second quarter against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports /
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NFL teams are starting to show interest in Joe Mixon, and the Los Angeles Chargers are on the list now.

Joe Mixon is the most controversial prospect in the 2017 NFL Draft, so much so he was not invited to the NFL Combine in Indianapolis. Teams were able to evaluate him in drills at Oklahoma’s Pro Day, though, and since then team visits have started to pile up.

The Denver Broncos and Cincinnati Bengals hosted Mixon last week, and on Monday the Oakland Raiders had him in for a visit. For his next team visit, Mixon will be staying in California.

According to Jim Trotter of ESPN, the Los Angeles Chargers are next on Mixon’s pre-draft tour. Teams are clearly not afraid of Mixon right now, at least on the level of trying to get to know him and see what he has to say about the 2014 incident where he punched a woman. No level of remorse for the act excuses it, but Mixon is getting a chance to be in front of teams and theoretically own his actions.

The Chargers are an interesting team to be using up a visit on Mixon. Melvin Gordon is clearly in place as the team’s No. 1 running back after putting up over 1,400 total yards with 10 rushing touchdowns last season. Danny Woodhead signed with the Baltimore Ravens in free agency, but Kenjon Barner was recently signed to help fortify the depth behind Gordon. Kenneth Farrow and Andre Williams are also around, ordinary talents that they are, so a rookie running back could push one of them off the Chargers roster.

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Mixon is a first-round talent, with versatility that could make him an immediate contributor in the NFL. Questions about if he will even be drafted next month are long gone, and it’s now just a matter of which team will take Mixon and how early they’ll take the leap.

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