AFC South Analyst, and host of the "Touring the AFC South Podcast", Mike Patton recently hosted a mailbag segment where he ranked the four wide receiving units in the AFC South. According to Patton, the ranking is:
- Jacksonville Jaguars (i.e. Parker Washington, Brian Thomas Jr., Jakobi Meyers)
- Tennessee Titans (i.e. Carnell Tate, Wan'Dale Robinson, Calvin Ridley)
- Houston Texans (i.e. Nico Collins, Jayden Higgins, Xavier Hutchinson)
- Indianapolis Colts (i.e. Alec Pierce, Josh Downs, Ashton Dulin)
The Texans receiving third place on this list may not sit well with fans, but Patton's reasoning for his perception actually makes sense for this early prognostication. In short: Houston could be better, but there are too many what if's to account for.
Texans face several major questions about wide receivers in 2026
Patton went into more specific detail regarding his placement of the Texans on Sunday's episode of the "We Want Houston podcast.
"I would have ranked Houston higher, but you know, I can't depend on Tank Dell to be healthy," began Patton. He continued,
"That's happened the last couple of years, he's been injured. I look at Higgins and Noel, and they were kind of missing an action some games, and other games they were right there in the action. So, you know, a little bit of too much inconsistency there. And then plus, you know, one through five. Can you can you name one through five wide receivers on that team? You can, you know, with Hutchinson, I can, but I'm saying can anybody else? and then Hutchinson was there, he he contributed, but you know, does he really like scare me like a number five?"
Patton specifically highlighted Dell's health, the inconsistent use of Higgins and Noel last season and the overall lack of impact depth after two-time Pro Bowler Nico Collins. All things considered, those are all fair points of critique when assessing the potential of Houston's receiving game in 2026. The lack of stability in several aspects of the wide receiving room is what led to Houston having the 14th-most receiving yards in the NFL last season at 232.7 yards per game. Funny enough, that landed them with the third-most in the division at that point.
It wasn't all bad though, as there were multiple high points to celebrate for the Texans' route runners in 2025.
Texans pass catchers showed major potential as a group last season
Some of the combined major contributions from the receiving room included:
- Nico Collins: Third-straight 1,000-yard season, second consecutive Pro Bowl appearance
- Jayden Higgins: Tied for the team lead in receiving touchdowns with six.
- Jaylin Noel: Set the rookie record for most punt return yards in a single season with 335.
- Xavier Hutchinson: Set a career-high in touchdown catches with three.
Keep in mind, this was with offensive coordinator Nick Caley being in his first year, the infrastructure depending on multiple rookies, a porous offensive line and an anemic rushing attack that put more pressure on the unit to compensate.
Even though there are still major questions facing the unit heading into 2026, all indicators are pointing toward a potential tidal wive of production in year two of this offense.
With Dell making his way back, multiple receivers being more experienced, a completely revamped offensive line and a reconstructed running back room , quarterback C.J. Stroud and Caley have all the weapons necessary to outperform preliminary expectations and field one of the most productive units of this current era of Texans football.
Add us as a preferred source on Google