The Houston Texans are monitoring their star receiver as they prepare for a divisional matchup against the Tennessee Titans. Nico Collins appeared on Wednesday’s injury report with a knee concern that has drawn attention from fantasy managers. For fantasy football managers counting on the Pro Bowl receiver, what is the latest on his status?
Nico Collins Injury Update
Collins was limited at practice on Wednesday due to a knee issue, marking his first appearance on the injury report this season. The veteran receiver had been playing through the first three weeks without any listed health concerns, making this a new development.
As a reminder, Wednesday practices are largely meaningless in terms of actual game availability. Teams routinely rest veteran players or exercise extreme caution with anyone dealing with minor issues, with many established players receiving maintenance days as standard practice.
The encouraging news is that Collins was able to practice, albeit in a limited capacity. This represents a positive development compared to missing practice entirely, which would signal a more serious concern about his health status.
A veteran like Collins getting in any practice at all on Wednesday is extremely encouraging, given his status as an established player who could easily have been given the day off entirely if the knee issue were significant. His participation, even in a limited role, suggests this is a minor concern that the team is managing proactively rather than a serious injury.
Collins is coming off his most productive performance of the season, catching eight of 11 targets for 104 yards and a touchdown in Sunday’s loss to Jacksonville. He played 54 of a possible 63 offensive snaps, demonstrating that he completed the game without any apparent limitations.
It’s possible that Collins’ listed limitations on Wednesday were indicative of load management rather than concern over his Week 4 status. The fact that he was on the field for the majority of snaps against the Jaguars suggests this knee issue developed after the contest or represents routine maintenance.
Fantasy managers should have no concern about his availability against the Titans. Collins’ ability to practice through the knee issue demonstrates that it’s not limiting his mobility or function in any meaningful way.
Collins Fantasy Outlook
Nico Collins has a deep touchdown in consecutive games after a brutal 3-25-0 showing in Week 1 against the Rams, restoring my faith in humanity as someone who had him ranked as my top overall player at the position entering the season.
That’s probably not going to happen, but it does begin to look like the Texans are starting to embrace the “drop everything and get Collins fed” game plan.
Week 3: First pass play of their first four drives
- Collins deep target, incomplete
- Nick Chubb, -2-yard reception
- Collins deep target, incomplete
- Collins, five-yard reception
The 50-yard touchdown was more of a defensive lapse than anything, but if C.J. Stroud is programmed to lock onto Collins, he’s going to get some of those.
In the fourth quarter, the flip side of that coin came into play. Understanding how much of this offense is on his shoulders, Collins overextended on a play and lost a fumble trying to do too much.
If we are losing points because our players are too aggressive, I’ll take my chances. Collins isn’t my WR1 anymore, but I do think he’s a locked-in WR1 that still has a chance to return value on the pick you spent this summer, even if this is one of the five worst offensive lines in the sport.
— PFSN Fantasy Analyst Kyle Soppe
