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2 Texans hit franchise milestones in victory over Titans

Nico Collins and Joe Mixon enter the Houston Texans’ record books after a breakout start to Sunday’s game in Nashville.

Joe Mixon promised the Houston Texans when they traded for him last offseason that they’d be getting a baller in the backfield.

Consider that mission accomplished following Sunday’s outing at Nissan Stadium against the Tennessee Titans.

Mixon, the Texans’ most consistent offensive weapon, secured his first 1,000-yard rushing season in a Houston uniform on the first drive against Tennesse before being pulled to prepare for the playoffs.

Mixon entered Week 18 needing just seven rushing yards to hit 1,000 for the season. After missing three games, the 2024 Pro Bowl runner wanted a spark to close out his first regular season in the AFC South.

It took just two carries for Mixon to surpass the mark, gaining 11 total yards and a first down while helping set up an eventual 2-yard touchdown pass to Nico Collins.

Mixon is just the sixth Texans player to hit the four-number production in a season, joining Arian Foster, Steve Slaton, Domanick Williams, Lamar Miller and Carlos Hyde. He’s the first tailback to reach 1,000 yards since Hyde broke the plane in 2019 en route to a division title.

The former Cincinnati Bengals star wasn’t the only player to make franchise history. Collins, who needed 32 yards to surpass 1,000 through the air, caught five passes for 38 yards to cross the threshold before the end of the first quarter.

Just to be safe, the Texans left Collins to stay in the game for one more play with Davis Mills at quarterback for a 6-yard gain.  After that, Collins joined Stroud and Mixon on the bench.

After posting a career-high 1,297 yards in 2023, Collins finished his fourth year with 1,006 yards in 12 games. He joins Andre Johnson, DeAndre Hopkins and Brandin Cooks as one of four players in Texans history with back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons.

The Texans await the outcome of Sunday’s game between the Chargers and Raiders to know who they’ll play in the wild-card round next week. With a win, Los Angeles would head to Houston as the No. 5 seed.

With a loss, the Pittsburgh Steelers would head to NRG Stadium instead.

Is Nico Collins playing Sunday? Latest updates for Texans WR

Nico Collins will see action on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.

The Houston Texans are at a crossroads entering Week 18 of the regular season.

Starters are expected to play against the Tennessee Titans, but the question is for how long? Texans coach DeMeco Ryans initially didn’t plan on playing starters, but after an abysmal outing against the Baltimore Ravens on Christmas Day, plans changed.

“For us right now, we’ve got to go play better,” Ryans said. “Our last outing on the field was not good enough. It was not representative of who we are. Defensively, offensively, just not a good representation of our team entirely. So we’ve got to go out and play better football.”

Among those who could miss the second half is wide receiver Nico Collins. Houston’s lead receiver is on the verge of making history after securing his place in the Pro Bowl, but the Texans are looking to win.

Collins also wants to end the season on a high note after failing to find the end zone against Baltimore on Christmas Day.

“I love football,”  Collins told reporters earlier this week. “I’m trying to play. I know you’ve got to take care of your players, want them to sit out and stuff. But I feel like if you love the game of football, you’re willing to do whatever. And I love it, so I’m trying to play. I ain’t trying to sit out.”

Nico Collins update

Collins will play on Sunday at Nissan Stadium. Should the Texans pull out to a significant lead, Ryans could elect to rest him for next week’s wild-card round.

After signing a three-year extension this offseason, Collins has been the go-to weapon of the offense. He’s only 31 yards shy of becoming the first wide receiver since Brandin Cooks in 2021 to post back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in a Texans’ uniform.

Collins would also join Hall of Fame receiver Andre Johnson and All-Pro DeAndre Hopkins as one of four players to accomplish a feat in a Texans’ uniform.

Nico Collins stats

After starting the season hot with 567 yards in five games, Collins was placed on the injured reserve for six weeks with a hamstring injury. He’s come back strong since Week 12, totaling 32 catches for three touchdowns.

Entering Week 18, Collins has notched 63 passes for 968 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 15.4 yards per catch.

Texans WR depth chart

With Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell on the season-ending injured reserve, the Texans picked up former Pittsburgh Steelers Pro Bowler Diontae Johnson off waivers. Johnson, who was traded to the Baltimore Ravens from the Carolina Panthers, only spent five games with the AFC North franchise before being released.

He’s expected to play on Sunday and teammates seem excited to watch him work.

“Diontae Johnson, he’s gonna look real good out there for us,” running back Joe Mixon said. “Incorporating him into the offense, I think that was major. I’ve played against him for years. I’ve obviously respected him as a football player. For him to come in and us be able to uplift him, because he was struggling this year going from place to place and figuring out where he stands.”

Behind Johnson and Collins are Robert Woods, John Metchie III, and Xavier Hutchinson.

Will Texans WR Nico Collins see more reps vs. Titans?

Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins saw a career-low in snaps during Monday’s win over the Dallas Cowboys.

The Houston Texans defeated the Dallas Cowboys to prove who was the top team in Texas for 2024.

That wasn’t a surprise since fans rushed to the exits faster than Cooper Rush went through his progressions.

Fans were taken aback by the limited reps for No. 1 target Nico Collins. After missing five games on the injured reserve with a hamstring injury, many figured the fourth-year pro would be the focal point of the passing attack in Arlington.

Far from it, actually. Collins, who caught four passes for 54 yards, saw action in only 28 of Houston’s 60 offensive snaps, marking a career-low since 2021.

Was Collins on a snap count? According to Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik, no, but Houston didn’t want to risk a setback that could derail the season goals further.

“Anytime you get a player like that back you are taking notes of how do we want to use him and how do we want to make sure we are being smart,” Slowik said Thursday. “If this game becomes a critical game at the end, we want him on the field so how do we make sure we are getting the best version of Nico when that happens?”

Houston, which secured a 34-10 win at AT&T Stadium, was content trusting its ground game. Joe Mixon scored three touchdowns and averaged 5.5 yards per run en route to finishing with 153 yards of offense.

C.J. Stroud wasn’t perfect, but he found a groove on crucial drives. The second-year passer finished 23-of-34 passing for 257 yards and an interception on a pass intended for Collins during the first quarter.

Houston (7-4) needs Collins for the offensive approach to remain at its peak. Throughout the first five weeks, Stroud and Collins were on a different level of consistency. Since his departure, there’s been evident regression in the passing game, tempo and consistency from the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year.

That should change as Collins continues to get back to full strength. The Texans play host to the Tennessee Titans on Sunday and star cornerback L’Jarius Sneed has already been ruled out.

That should benefit Collins in man coverage, right? Perhaps, but Slowik mentioned that the Texans aren’t changing their approach on rep count until Collins is in direct swing.

“We are always going to approach it as we are going to try to be smart,” Slowik said. “The more often you can get a really good player on the field one hundred percent and not winded and being able to roll, we are going to do that as often as we can.”

Kickoff is scheduled for noon CT.