Jayden

Higgins

With Nico Collins (concussion) out and Dalton Schultz (calf) soon joining him, Higgins took over as the Texans’ No. 1 pass catcher after playing second fiddle to Christian Kirk in the Wild Card Round. Although it was a disastrous day for the Texans’ passing attack, Higgins was indeed a “rare bright spot.” Although he was much more involved in the second half of the season than the first, Higgins did have a quiet stretch run as the Texans rode their defense to the postseason. The No. 34 overall pick still showed more than enough for fantasy managers to maintain optimism heading into Year 2 in Houston. Collins spends an unfortunate amount of time on the shelf, while Schultz has no guaranteed money remaining on his contract. Kirk is an impending free agent. Already with a 41/525/6 slash to his name, Higgins could end up a “surprising” 2026 WR2 in fantasy.

Collins was unable to practice throughout the week. Texans slot WR Christian Kirk operated as the team’s No. 1 wide receiver last week, and is likely the best bet to do so again against the Patriots. It is an unfortunate development for Collins, who also missed his team’s Week 8 game against the 49ers due to concussion. Texans rookie WRs, Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel, have a chance to rise to the occasion.

Kirk served as quarterback C.J. Stroud’s primary option throughout as alpha wide receiver Nico Collins drew lockdown shadow coverage from standout corner Joey Porter Jr. That role only grew in the fourth quarter following Collins’ departure due to a concussion, an ailment that has a good chance of keeping him sidelined through the team’s Divisional Round matchup against the Patriots next weekend. Jayden Higgins will likely step into the primary perimeter role in the absence of Collins after catching 3-of-4 targets for 39 yards against the Steelers, while Xavier Hutchinson and Jaylin Noel split WR3 duties.

It is worth noting that Higgins had one target after halftime — the Texans can’t sit all their starters, but perhaps they don’t quite consider Higgins in the main circle of trust yet. Either way, his touchdown was a nice underneath toe-tapper in the red zone and he paid off for anyone who had to pivot to him when Nico Collins was ruled out ahead of the game.

The Texans could still win the AFC South with a win and a Jacksonville loss today, but the Jags face the lowly Titans. That all but guarantees them the AFC South crown, relegating Houston to a road playoff game. With little to play for, Collins will get the week off. As Slater notes, this will also give the Texans a better look at their rookie wideouts, Jaylin Noel and Jayden Higgins. Both players are now solid FLEX options for fantasy managers still setting lineups this week.

Higgins was the first player to find the end zone on Saturday. The rookie wide receiver took off on a post route, on 3rd-and-1 during the Texans’ opening drive, dusting Chargers CB Donte Jackson, sans safety help, as he broke inward. The Texans’ offensive line kept QB C.J. Stroud clean, giving Stroud time to plant and throw an accurate pass, hitting Higgins in stride as he pulled away from his coverage defender en route to a 75-yard score. Higgins is a viable FLEX starter in Week 18 against the Colts.

Back-to-back duds for Higgins, who also had one catch last week. His catch was a big one, but the Texans are spreading the ball around enough that he won’t have consistent fantasy value. Higgins will be a hard-to-start WR5 against the Chargers in Week 17.

The bad news is that the target tree narrowed and C.J. Stroud was content to check it down underneath to running backs, the good news is: Higgins still played 48-of-67 snaps and was more involved than most of the other non-Nico Collins wideouts. These things happen when you start the game with a 17-0 lead. He’ll still remain a WR4/FLEX play at best against the Raiders.

Higgins continues to churn out meaningful production for a Texans team in dire need of secondary options behind alpha wide receiver Nico Collins. The towering rookie was kept out of the end zone but made two key grabs to keep the chains moving and could continue his ascension towards the end of the season. Up next is a plus matchup against the battered Cardinals in Week 15.

He played 44 of 76 Texans snaps, second-most amongst the wideouts. Higgins made one major mistake, trying to bust a middle-of-field target for a big gain and eschewing a first down during the two-minute drill. Otherwise, the volume looks good, the role looks good, and if the Texans ever actually got this offense cooking he’d be in WR3 consideration. Instead, we’ve got a classic WR4. Week 14 against the Chiefs figures to be a good place to use him in that role again.