Promising second-year Texans wide receiver Jayden Higgins tore his ACL in Tuesday’s joint practice with the Ravens and will miss the entire 2026 season, ESPN reports.
Higgins, 23, was the No. 34 overall pick last year out of Iowa State, and he showed promise as a rookie, posting 41 catches for 525 yards and a team-high six touchdowns. He added nine catches for 98 yards across two playoff games, too.
At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, Higgins gave C.J. Stroud another physical, big-bodied wide receiver target opposite two-time Pro Bowler Nico Collins (6-foot-4, 222 pounds). In fact, Collins had major praise for Higgins earlier this training camp.
“He’s a dog,” Collins said Aug. 1. “You see the work he’s been putting in, it’s showing up on the grass field. He has all the tools in the world. He’s going to be the face of this franchise at some point. His playmaking ability, his size, he has all the tools in the world. I can’t wait to see him rock out this year. It’s going to be exciting.”
Instead, the Texans will have to turn elsewhere for receiving production outside Collins and tight end Dalton Schultz, who led the team with 82 catches last year. Jaylin Noel, a third-round pick out of Iowa State last year, could see more action both in the slot and out wide, while Xavier Hutchinson (6’3″, 210 pounds) is a more like-for-like replacement for Higgins in terms of size.
The biggest wildcard is Tank Dell, a diminutive 2023 third-round pick who had 98 catches for 1,376 yards and 10 touchdowns in his first two seasons before suffering a devastating knee injury late in the 2024 season. Dell dislocated his knee, tore his ACL, MCL and LCL and suffered meniscus damage. He missed all of last year and has been steadily working his way back. DeMeco Ryans said he’s unsure if Dell will play in the preseason.
Wide receiver health remains an issue for Houston. In addition to Dell’s absence, Collins missed two games last year, and Christian Kirk missed three. The year before, Collins missed five games, Stefon Diggs tore his ACL midway through the season, and Dell got hurt late in the year.
