Fantasy Football Impact: Nico Collins Gets Positive Update After Worrying Injury News

After a great Week 1 fantasy football performance, WR1 for the Houston Texans, Nico Collins’ 2026 season could be put on hold after he suffered an injury in the Texans' most recent practice.

Nico Collins Injury Update

Collins suffered a hamstring injury at Houston's practice on Wednesday, Sep. 16. Texans reporter for KPRC2, Aaron Wise, said the following on X regarding Collins.

“Texans Pro Bowl receiver Nico Collins practiced and injured his hamstring Wednesday, with tests pending, per a league source.

NFL Insider Adam Schefter provided an update on Collins status Thursday morning of Sep.17 on X.

"Texans WR Nico Collins injured his hamstring at Wednesday’s practice, met with doctors after and they “don’t believe it’s serious,” per source. Yet Collins’ status for Sunday’s game vs. the Bengals is in jeopardy."

While it is good to see Collins' injury should not keep him out long-term, the Texans being without Collins, even for one game, is a devastating blow. They are already without their WR2, Jayden Higgins, who tore his ACL in the offseason. If Collins does miss time, there are a couple of Houston pass-catchers fantasy managers should have their eyes on.

Fantasy Impact If Nico Collins Misses Time

Two players who could become startable fantasy players with Collins out are Houston WRs Kayshon Boutte and Xavier Hutchinson. They both had underwhelming Week 1 performances, but could be unlocked in bigger roles.

Xavier Hutchinson

Hutchinson would be the listed WR1 on the Texans without Collins. In Week 1, he had three receptions for 32 yards on six targets—the third most on the team. In 2025, he had some solid outings. In two games, he had five or more receptions and over 60 receiving yards.

Hutchinson also has similar traits to Collins, making him a prime candidate to take up the volume Collins was getting. He is a big-bodied WR at 6’3” compared to Collins, who is 6’,4”.

He should be viewed as one of the best waiver-wire stream WRs right now. He is almost available on all platforms. In ESPN leagues, he is currently just 1.1% rostered.

Kayshon Boutte

The Texans acquired former New England Patriots WR Boutte to bolster their WR depth after Higgins went out for the season. They may now need him to play an even bigger role than the one they planned for him to have, at least in the short term. He has just as good a chance as Hutchinson of being the Texans' go-to target in their pass game.

In 2025 with the Patriots, Boutte had a few notable games. He had three games with 75 or more receiving yards. This included a game against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 1, where he had six receptions for 103 yards on eight targets.

In Week 1 of this season, Boutte had just one reception for 21 yards. He had the fourth-most receiving yards among Texans WRs, trailing Collins, Hutchinson, and Jaylin Noel. He did, however, have the third-highest snap percentage among Texans WRs. He played in 46% of snaps, Hutchinson played in 56%, Noel played in 30%, and Collins played in 72%.

Boutte in ESPN leagues is currently 13.3% rostered.

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