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| Houston Texans Wide Receiver Nico Collins Greets Participants Of His Youth Football Camp |
On Saturday, Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins must have had a flashback to his 2023 NFL season as he made his way toward the young men and women attending his youth football camp at Houston Christian High School.
“Nico, Nico, Nico!” the attendees screamed from the field, along with their parents in the stands.
Hearing his name was something he was used to on his way to being ranked among the NFL’s top ten wide receivers last season. He finished with 80 receptions for 1,297 yards and eight touchdowns while playing in only 15 regular-season games.
Looking ahead to the upcoming season, Collins is eager to build on his impressive stats. He’s excited about playing another season alongside quarterback C.J. Stroud, wide receiver Tank Dell, and tight end Dalton Shultz.
Even with their impressive run of winning the AFC South division and making it to the divisional round of the playoffs, head coach DeMeco Ryans and general manager Nick Caserio were unsatisfied. So, during the offseason, they added running back Joe Mixon and former first-team All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the offense.
“It’s nice,” Collins smiled when asked about the additions. “I feel like on the offense, it has a lot of weapons. Everybody has a chance for the ball to be in their hands. For us, we have to continue to work on the details and continue to be us and have fun.”
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When specifically asked about Diggs, Collins could not hide his emotions about adding him to offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik’s offense, which should take a considerable leap next season after finishing 2023 with the seventh-ranked passing offense in the NFL.
“Oh yeah, it’s going to be dangerous, real dangerous, man,” Collins said. “Adding Diggs to the room, it’s going to be a lot of weapons. It is going to be a great opportunity for everybody. It’s only adding more depth, more weapons to the offense, more weapons to the team. The sky is the limit for us. I can’t wait until the season starts.”
Collins and Diggs were able to do some bonding when both were teammates on the roster of current Houston Texans players who competed against the Texans Legends, which is made up of former players, last Saturday at the J.J. Watt Charity Classic Softball Game.
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| Collins And Stefon Diggs Jokes Around With Will Anderson Jr. |
“He’s cool,” said Collins. “I met him when he first came in, when he first signed and stuff, but cool people. I can’t wait to share the field with him. I have been watching him for a minute. It is a blessing to share the room with him. I can’t wait to get back into the offense and show the world what we are about.”
The only hurdle that Collins will face heading into training camp is the uncertainty of whether the Texans will offer him a contract extension. He is in the final year of the four-year rookie contract he signed back in 2021.
“For me, I just got to continue to keep my head down,” Collins answered when asked how he would handle the contract situation. I will continue to work on my game, continue to improve every day, and continue to chase my end goal.”