Texans' DeMeco Ryans Breaks Silence on Jayden Higgins' ACL Injury

The Houston Texans are expected to be without second-year wide receiver Jayden Higgins for the 2026 season after he suffered a torn ACL earlier this week.

The injury was suffered on a play in the Texans' joint practice with the Las Vegas Raiders. Higgins initially left practice on Tuesday with a knee injury suffered after going down on a play covered by cornerback Eric Stokes, yet he was able to walk off the field under his own power.

Fast forward a bit, Houston's 2025 second-round pick is out for the year, and the Texans' offense will now be looking a little bit different from what was expected heading into training camp.

What DeMeco Ryans Said About Jayden Higgins' Injury

It's a huge loss for the Texans that arose even before the second game of their preseason slate, let alone their first game of the regular season.

And after Houston's second preseason outing against the Raiders, head coach DeMeco Ryans spoke about Higgins' injury for the first time since the news was reported.

"Very unfortunate news with Jayden going down with the torn ACL. He'll be out for the year––and it hurts," Ryans said on Thursday night. I feel like every time I've gotten up and talked, I've highlighted Jayden Higgins because of the work that he's done at OTAs, throughout training camp."

"He was one of our best players, if not arguably the best player on the field when he's been out there. So it's a significant loss for us. We've got a void to feel there, and it won't be easy to fill the void that Jayden is leaving behind.

Ryans isn't wrong. He has talked about and highlighted Higgins a ton throughout the Texans' offseason and training camp as one of their premier playmakers.

Back at OTAs, Ryans emphasized how much Higgins had taken advantage of the time he's had throughout the offseason, and made it clear he was due for a bigger role this season because of it.

"[Jayden] Higgins has done a really great job of taking advantage of the offseason," Ryans said of the second-year wideout in June. "Really coming back in shape. He's looking bigger, stronger, faster–– which is what you expect for a second-year player of his caliber."

"He's definitely taken advantage of it. I'm really excited to see what it's going to look like this season. I know he's going to have a really good year based on how he looks right now."

Higgins has been fully expected to take control of the Texans' WR2 spot on the depth chart on the opposite side of Nico Collins. The second-year pass-catcher, after a solid first season, had an extremely productive offseason where he looks both physically and technically refined compared to his 2025 self.

Jul 31, 2026; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver Jayden Higgins (81) during training camp at Houston Methodist Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In 2025, Higgins played all 17 games to log 41 receptions, 525 yards, and six touchdowns, eventually turning into one of the Texans' more featured targets in the offense next to Collins and tight end Dalton Schultz.

However, that's now a player the Texans will be without for the foreseeable future. His 2026 campaign is over, really before it even started, and Houston will now be tasked with searching for answers as to what to do next within their wide receiver room.

Could that solution come via trade? Would a good fit be able to emerge from the free agent market? Will someone else already on the Texans' roster step up to the occasion?

Time will tell how the Texans attack their wide receiver room next, and who might become the team's second-leading pass-catcher at the position like Higgins was expected to be.

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