As Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins was being unveiled as the 58th-overall selection on this year's NFL Top 100 list, All-Pro teammate Derek Stingley Jr. issued a challenge to defensive backs across the NFL. With a smirk on his face, Stingley comfortably uttered, "I don't think anyone can cover him one-on-one."
Though it's his teammate, those words have concrete credibility coming from the mouth of one who's made a multi-time First-Team All-Pro career out of shutting down the best receivers across the league on a weekly basis. His Pro Bowl teammate in quarterback C.J. Stroud even added that he believes Collins to already be at a "superstar" level as of right now.
Is Nico Collins truly "unguardable?"
In 47 total games played since 2023, Collins has never been held without a catch for a game. In fact, across his 66 career games since 2021, Collins has only had one game where he was held without a reception. This came in week 13 of the 2021 season (his rookie year), where the Texans were demolished 31-0 at the hands of their divisional counterparts in the Indianapolis Colts at NRG Stadium.
Collins was targeted just once and had zero catches in that contest. Side note: this was with backup quarterback Davis MiMills under center, along with then-teammates like running backs Rex Burkhead and Royce Freeman, and wide receivers Brandin Cooks and Chris Conley.
Outside of that one anomaly, Collins has gone five seasons being a constently reliable target as a 6-foot-4-sized difference maker.
History suggests further dominance of secondaries by Nico Collins
Many a defensive back has tried to minimize his impact, with one of the most recent examples being that of a former Tennessee Titans big-money free agency signee in cornerback L'Jarius Sneed, who infamously uttered, "Who?" when asked last season about how he planned to affect Collins in the passing game ahead of the week four matchup.
The result? A 26-0 beatdown of the Titans, which featured Collins going off for a game-high 79 yards on four catches. By the way, this included Collins absolutely torching Sneed on a 37-yard deep shot with around four minutes left in the third quarter. That reception help ignite Houston's first touchdown drive of the game, which ended on a 12-yard scoring grab to running back Woody Marks in the red zone.
Whether against a player like Sneed or anyone else, Collins has been up to the task of demonstrating his downfield proficiency no matter the cirucmstance. Here's hoping for more moments like this from Collins in the 2026 season and beyond.
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