NicoCollins

News: 5 hours agoTexans head coach DeMeco Ryans said Tuesday that Collins (hamstring) will practice this week, and the expectation is that the receiver will play in Monday's game against the Cowboys, DJ Bien-Aime of ESPN.com reports.

Spin: Last Friday, Collins was cleared for his first practice since Week 5, then was listed as questionable ahead of Sunday's game versus the Lions. Though he was activated from injured reserve Saturday, Collins was still considered a game-time decision leading up to Sunday, with the Texans ultimately making him inactive ahead of the 26-23 loss. According to Jonathan M. Alexander of the Houston Chronicle, Ryans said that Collins didn't suffer a setback with his right hamstring injury upon practicing in a limited fashion Friday, as the Texans seemingly wanted him to get in some more reps during the upcoming week before clearing him for a return to game action. Assuming Collins practices Thursday through Saturday without issue, he'll likely approach the Week 11 game in Dallas without a designation and shouldn't face any limitations with his snaps as Houston's No. 1 wideout. Collins led the NFL with 567 receiving yards through the first five weeks of the season before missing the last five games with the injury.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: If Year 3 saw Collins break out in a big way, what does his fourth season have in store? It's impressive to note that despite being just 30th in the league in targets last season, Collins finished eighth in receiving yardage. Second only to Tyreek Hill in yards per route run in 2023, Collins shined via both surface and advanced statistics. This was all accomplished during a season that saw him miss multiple games due to injury. Even as the team brought in target competition for this upcoming season in Stefon Diggs, Collins' unique verticality, prime age and established rapport with C.J. Stroud inspires confidence in WR1 expectations for the Texans. You'll likely need to be aggressive in drafts to get your hands on this ascending wideout in the early rounds.