The Bengals retained Joe Mixon this offseason, despite a run of uncertainty regarding his status with the team. The seventh-year running back also received some good news on the legal front Thursday.

A judge found Mixon not guilty on the misdemeanor aggravated menacing charge that stemmed from a January road rage incident, WKRC12’s Christian Houser tweets. Mixon, 27, had pleaded not guilty to the charge in April. This led to a four-day trial that wrapped Thursday.

The Bengals running back was accused of pointed a gun at a woman during a traffic encounter, which occurred before the team was to gather at Paycor Stadium ahead of its departure for a divisional-round game in Buffalo. While police initially dropped the charge in February, it was refiled upon further review. A conviction could have resulted in 180 days in jail, but Thursday morning’s decision will close this chapter for the veteran back.

Mixon, of course, entered the NFL with ugly baggage. A video of him punching a woman in the face led to a season-long suspension at Oklahoma, and the Bengals faced criticism for drafting him in the 2017 second round. Mixon was not suspended for that incident, since it occurred before he entered the league, and has not been suspended since he was drafted. While the NFL’s personal conduct policy does not mandate a conviction for a suspension, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones tweets Mixon should not be expected to face a league penalty in connection with the January incident.

After Samaje Perine turned down a Bengals offer to sign with the Broncos, the defending AFC North champions still circled back to a Mixon pay cut. Months of rumors on that front led to Mixon accepting a steep reduction. Formerly tied to a $12MM-per-year contract, Mixon agreed to new terms that reduced his through-2024 deal to a two-year, $11.5MM pact.

Joining Aaron Jones in accepting a pay cut off a $12MM-per-year contract this offseason, Joe Mixon accepted a steeper pay slash compared to the Packers running back. The seventh-year Bengals back is now tied to what can be labeled a two-year, $11.5MM deal — one that gives the Bengals flexibility to move on after the 2023 season.

Mixon entered the offseason as one of eight backs tied to eight-figure-per-year extensions. While he remains under contract nearly three years after agreeing to a four-year, $48MM Cincinnati extension, the former second-round pick is now making a fraction of the AAV he signed up for in 2020. With Samaje Perine gone, however, Mixon is the clear-cut Bengals starter. And it is not out of the question his workload increases in 2023.

“I see the bigger picture. I see the task at hand and what we’re trying to build and in order to keep other players here and pieces here, sometimes you have to sacrifice,” Mixon said, via Bengals.com’s Geoff Hobson. “I felt like this year was the year to sacrifice on the Super Bowl team we can potentially be.

JULY 23: OverTheCap.com offers more clarity on Mixon’s pay cut. Essentially, the reworked deal can be viewed as a two-year, $11.5MM contract with $4.13MM guaranteed. Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic (subscription required) classifies the guaranteed money as a signing bonus, while OTC says it’s a roster bonus.

In either case, Mixon — who will also earn a veteran minimum $1.08MM base salary in 2023 — secured his place on the roster for the upcoming season. Dehner also confirms the original report that the former Pro Bowler can earn up to $2MM in incentives this year. However, while Dehner acknowledges that the restructure techincally allows the Bengals to retain Mixon in 2024, he does not believe that will happen unless Mixon turns in a “monster 2023.”

If Cincinnati were to cut Mixon next offseason, it would incur just $2.8MM in dead money.

JULY 15: Joe Mixon is staying in Cincinnati, but he had to take a significant pay cut to do so. We heard yesterday that the running back had restructured his contract to stick in Cincinnati, and we’re now getting details on what Mixon actually gave up.

[RELATED: Bengals, Joe Mixon Finalizing Restructure]

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (via Twitter), Mixon took a $4.39MM pay cut for the 2023 campaign and a $4.67M pay cut for the 2024 campaign. The running back’s base salary is now down to $5.51MM, and he can earn another $2MM via incentives in 2023. As Rapoport notes, this restructuring will also increase the chances of Mixon sticking around for the 2024 season.

Mixon was still playing on a four-year, $48MM deal he signed with the Bengals in 2020. The Bengals were fine carrying Mixon and his $11.42MM cap hit during the 2022 season, especially coming off a 2021 campaign where he had career-highs in rushes (292), rushing yards (1,205), and rushing touchdowns (13). However, with the organization facing pricey extensions for foundational pieces like Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase, the front office had to get creative.

As a result, Mixon was already a common candidate to earn a pay cut this offseason. The veteran running back was set to earn $10.1MM in 2023 and was attached to a $12.79MM cap hit. The Bengals stood to save over $7MM by releasing him, and that number would have been bumped to $10MM if they did so as a post-June 1 cut. Instead, both sides decided to stick together and agree to a reworked deal.

Considering the plight of the current crop of free agent RBs (including Dalvin Cook and Ezekiel Elliott) and extension-seeking RBs (including Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs), it made sense for Mixon to secure his roster spot for (likely) the next two seasons. The 26-year-old didn’t have his strongest campaign in 2022, finishing with only 814 rushing yards and seven rushing touchdowns.

It also made sense for the Bengals to renegotiate a restructured deal vs. outright releasing the veteran. The team lost Samaje Perine this offseason, leaving little experienced depth behind Mixon. Behind the starter, the Bengals are eyeing depth pieces like fifth-round rookie Chase Brown, special teamer Trayveon Williams, and former sixth-round pick Chris Evans.

On the radar for several weeks, the Joe Mixon pay-cut situation still lingers for the Bengals. The seventh-year veteran went through Cincinnati’s minicamp in his usual starting role, but he is still not a lock to be on the team when it begins padded practices in August.

While vested veterans’ salaries do not become guaranteed until the Tuesday before Week 1, the Bengals and Mixon want this situation resolved “sooner rather than later,” Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic notes (subscription required). Mixon, 27 in July, is tied to a $9.4MM base salary this year; the Bengals have long aimed to reduce that.

This probably is not going over well with Mixon, but his status has been an uncertainty since before the running back position began sustaining steady body blows. Bengals executive VP Duke Tobin said back at the Combine that Mixon’s status on the 2023 roster would be determined, and word of a pay-cut request emerged in mid-April.

As we wrap up June, Mixon remains tied to the four-year, $48MM contract he signed just before the 2020 season. The Bengals may be waiting to hammer out their Joe Burrow extension before addressing the Mixon matter, but no updates have come out on the quarterback’s negotiations in some time. With Burrow’s talks partially tied to how the Chargers proceed with Justin Herbert, the team may need to reach a Mixon agreement before Burrow signs.

This year has brought grim updates for the running back position. The Cowboys and Vikings shed two of the position’s top four deals from their respective payrolls, releasing Ezekiel Elliott and Dalvin Cook. Although Aaron Jones‘ restructure came with more 2023 security, the Packers back agreed to a $5MM pay cut. The Chargers refused to give Austin Ekeler, the NFL’s touchdown leader in each of the past two seasons, a raise; a minor incentive package became the solution instead. Miles Sanders‘ $6.35MM-per-year contract led the way for a deep free agency class this year. None of the three franchise-tagged backs — Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs, Tony Pollard — have extensions in place. Sanders said this week that “it sucks to be a running back right now.”

The developments of the past few months may point to the Bengals asking for a significant Mixon reduction — perhaps more than the Packers $5MM Jones trim. With the likes of Elliott, Cook, Leonard Fournette and Kareem Hunt unsigned, the Bengals still have outside options. But the team is unlikely to consider those UFAs until they drop their asking prices, Dehner adds. This creates an interesting scenario for the AFC power.

The Vikings were rumored to be seeking a Cook cut, but they are not believed to have offered a specific number before releasing their 2017 RB draftee. Coming off a down year, Mixon is seemingly short on options. But the Bengals did lose Samaje Perine to the Broncos in free agency. The Bengals are believed to have offered their veteran backup a deal similar to the two-year, $7.5MM terms the Broncos proposed. Cincinnati used a fifth-round pick on Illinois’ Chase Brown and has fifth-year player Trayveon Williams and third-year back Chris Evans rostered as well. None of the team’s other options profiles as a starter. Perine’s exit provides apparent Mixon leverage, but the cadre of accomplished free agents would stand to undercut it.

Mixon did earn a Pro Bowl nod after totaling 1,519 scrimmage yards and 16 touchdowns — both career-high marks — in 2021, helping the Bengals to Super Bowl LVI. This extension, like those given to Cook and Jones, has benefited the team. But the state of the market — and the contract statuses of Burrow, Tee Higgins and Logan Wilson — prompted the Bengals to make this play. Mixon’s response will either keep the Bengals’ stacked skill-position corps intact or add another big name to the free agent mix.

Shortly after the draft, fifth-year Bengals HC Zac Taylor indicated Joe Mixon‘s future is “here with the team.” The Bengals have employed Mixon as their starting back since his 2017 rookie season, and Samaje Perine declined their offer before signing with the Broncos.

But the prospect of a Mixon pay cut surfaced before Taylor’s comments. Despite the coach’s endorsement, the team is still planning on a Mixon pay reduction, Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic notes (subscription required).

[RELATED: Mixon Facing Misdemeanor Charge]

Although Mixon and Dalvin Cook were each part of a deep 2017 running back class, the former is a year younger. Mixon will turn 27 in July. But the Bengals are following the Vikings and Packers leads in aiming to adjust their seventh-year starter’s extension. Mixon and Cook signed their respective re-ups just before the 2020 season, with the Packers matching the Bengals’ Mixon AAV for Aaron Jones ($12MM). Cook’s is no longer an active contract, while Jones accepted a trim in exchange for more 2023 guarantees. Mixon’s deal calls for a $9.4MM 2023 base salary and a $12.8MM cap hit.

The Bengals remain ready to give Mixon, whose $12MM-per-year deal runs through 2024, a late-offseason ultimatum. Mixon refusing the reduction will likely lead to a release and the team searching for outside help, Dehner adds.

While this is certainly not an optimal time for Mixon to be forced into a salary trim, his 2023 status has been a talking point since the Combine. The Bengals, however, have the most significant contract in franchise history to hammer out before clarity emerges. Joe Burrow and the team have been in talks on what will almost certainly be a record-setting extension since late March. Burrow’s re-up will change Cincinnati’s blueprint, and it may well affect how the team navigates its receiver situation. And Mixon’s future will be impacted by Burrow’s deal.

But the Bengals went through their offseason program with Mixon looking again like a central figure in their offense, per Dehner. The former second-round pick has started 71 games and ripped off three 1,000-yard seasons. Last year was not one of them, with Mixon totaling just 814 rushing yards and missing three games. Mixon’s rushing yards-per-game number dropped from 75.3 in 2021 to 58.1 last season. That said, the Oklahoma alum did add a career-best 441 receiving yards. Mixon has logged 1,545 career touches. Since 2017, only Ezekiel Elliott, Derrick Henry and Alvin Kamara have topped that. His age aside, Mixon is on the downside of his career.

Mixon may reluctantly agree to the Bengals’ terms, seeing as this marks the best opportunity to remain a full-time back — especially with Perine out of the mix. While he could also hold the line and see if a Bengals team aiming to dethrone the Chiefs is keen on losing a proven upper-echelon back, the Bengals would have free agency options as well. Four-year Browns back Kareem Hunt still available. Cook also is taking his time, waiting for a competitive offer on a contending team. Elliott, Leonard Fournette and Darrell Henderson are also available. As for in-house options, the Bengals drafted Illinois’ Chase Brown in the fifth round. He joins fifth-year back Trayveon Williams and 2021 sixth-rounder Chris Evans on Cincy’s depth chart.

The batch of accomplished backs on the market also will probably factor into the Bengals’ Mixon price point. So will the 2023 developments at the position. No back secured more than $6.5MM per year this offseason; the Cowboys and Vikings moved on from their pricey starters; Austin Ekeler was forced to accept a low-level Chargers incentive package after requesting a trade; the Giants have pulled Saquon Barkley offers off the table. While it will be interesting to see how this Mixon saga ends, it seems a near certainty his contract will be adjusted before Week 1.

APRIL 19: The Bengals running back pleaded not guilty to the charge Wednesday in Hamilton County Municipal Court, according to the Associated Press. A judge ordered Mixon have no contact with the woman.

APRIL 7: Joe Mixon will end up facing a misdemeanor charge of aggravated menacing. After the charge was dropped in February, Sharon Coolidge and Kelsey Conway of the Cincinnati Enquirer report Mixon will be recharged in connection with a January road-rage incident.

The Bengals running back allegedly pointed a gun at a woman during a traffic encounter, which occurred before the team was to gather at Paycor Stadium before departing for its divisional-round game in Buffalo. Mixon must appear in court April 19.

“This decision was reached following the discovery of new evidence during the investigative process,” a statement from Cincinnati police said, via the Enquirer. The Bengals released a statement indicating they are aware of the charge, Conway tweets.

Mixon, 26, allegedly pointed a gun at a woman at 12:49pm on Jan. 21 in downtown Cincinnati. While police initially dropped the charge in February, the door remained open to it being refiled upon further review. The woman who submitted the complaint indicated she will cooperate with authorities, Coolidge and Conway add.

The Bengals took some heat back in 2017 when they selected Mixon, who had been suspended from Oklahoma’s team for punching a woman in the face. A woman shoved and slapped Mixon during a July 2014 dispute at a restaurant; Mixon’s punch broke four bones in the woman’s face. The Sooners suspended Mixon for the 2014 season, but he returned and emerged on the draft radar after two productive seasons. The Bengals took Mixon in the second round; he has been the team’s starting running back for most of his career.

Mixon agreed to a deferred sentence in connection with the assault, undergoing counseling and performing community service. As a result, no conviction appears on his record. Since the incident occurred before Mixon entered the NFL, he was not suspended. Mixon could be suspended for the January incident, however, regardless of the case’s outcome.

The Bengals, who gave Mixon a $12MM-per-year extension in 2020, have not committed to keeping him around for a seventh season. The team made an offer to retain Samaje Perine, but Mixon’s longtime backup opted to sign with the Broncos. But Cincinnati can save $10MM by designating Mixon as a post-June 1 cut. The Pro Bowler is due a $9.4MM base salary in 2023. Mixon’s contract runs through the 2024 season.