Nico Collins handed the Houston Texans two pieces of good news before anyone stepped on a practice field. Speaking to reporters Saturday at a charity event hosted by teammate Ed Ingram, Collins said he is healthy entering training camp after a limited offseason program, and he vouched for the unproven receiver group behind him — including Tank Dell, who has not played since the 2024 season, and sixth-round rookie Lewis Bond. Heavy’s Josh Buckhalter wrote up the comments Sunday night, a day before Houston’s rookies report to camp.
“I’m excited for Tank to get back,” Collins said, before naming Bond and Xavier Hutchinson. “Whole receiving room just a bunch of dawgs. And we all gonna push each other, gonna get better every single day during this camp.”
The endorsement lands on the roster’s thinnest proven position. Christian Kirk, who handled slot duties for Houston last season, is now with the 49ers, and the team has not added a veteran receiver to replace him. Behind Collins sit second-year wideouts Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel, Hutchinson, Dell coming off a long knee rehab, and Bond, the rookie Collins singled out. For a receiver corps attached to a 12-win team with contention plans, that is a lot of projection and very little track record.
Collins’s own health is the bigger half of the story. He was limited during the spring program, and league evaluators who ranked him the No. 8 receiver this month paired the praise with the same caveat they always attach: he has missed at least two games in each of his five NFL seasons. Three straight 1,000-yard years tie the longest streak in franchise history, so every week he is available, the offense has its anchor.
The first checkpoints come fast. Rookies report Tuesday, veterans follow July 28, and Dell’s early practice designation will say more about the room’s depth than any July quote can. If Dell returns to form and Bond earns the slot role Collins is hinting at, Houston’s decision to skip the veteran-receiver market starts to look deliberate rather than unfinished.
For fantasy purposes, Collins saying he is healthy keeps him locked in as an early-round WR1. Dell is the name to watch: if he practices fully in camp, he becomes one of the better late-round upside picks in drafts, though redraft players should wait for August practice reports before spending anything. Bond is a dynasty-only stash for now, but a rookie earning slot snaps in a C.J. Stroud offense is the kind of cheap ticket that pays out quickly — his camp usage is worth tracking.
