The Indianapolis Colts will take the field Sunday looking for their first win of the 2026 NFL season.
They’ve begun 0-2, and now they get to take on the Houston Texans‘ talented defense and rising star QB C.J. Stroud.
The Colts do get one break on Sunday, though: Texans WR1 Nico Collins isn’t playing.
That may or may not be enough to make a difference in the game as a whole.
But there will certainly be some moments when the Texans would’ve loved to have Collins out there and instead will have to rely on other guys to make plays.
Why Isn’t Nico Collins Playing Today?
Nico Collins isn’t playing on Sunday for the Texans against the Colts due to injury.
Collins is dealing with a hamstring problem.
He was injured initially in practice before Week 2, and he had to sit out that game as the Texans lost to the Cincinnati Bengals.
That makes this the second consecutive missed game for Collins, who also had injury troubles in 2025.
The Texans, like the Colts, are 0-2 this season. This is the first divisional game for both teams, and so it’ll be a chance for both to get things back on track.
Last season, Collins had 1,117 receiving yards and six touchdowns in 15 games played. Without him, the Texans are a lot weaker on the perimeter.
Texans WR Depth Chart vs. Colts
The Texans will have to turn to other pass catchers against Indy with Collins out.
The top-three look like they’ll be Xavier Hutchinson, Kayshon Boutte and Jaylin Noel.
Hutchinson is the best deep threat of the group. Boutte was also an explosive playmaker a season ago for the New England Patriots before being traded this summer.
The Texans also have unheralded wideouts Jared Wayne and Lewis Bond to potentially catch passes.
Houston will likely lean a lot on tight end Dalton Schultz, who just had 12 catches in Week 2 without Collins.
What About Sauce Gardner?
The interesting element here for the Colts’ defense is that if Collins was healthy, star cornerback Sauce Gardner likely would’ve guarded him a good amount.
Without Collins, there may no longer be a priority matchup for Sauce.
Boutte is probably the most well-rounded threat the Texans have among their healthy receivers now, so he’s worth keeping an eye on early in the game to see if he gets the Sauce treatment.
The Colts could also take a differing approach and throw some varied looks at the Texans to try and improve the overall performance of the Indy secondary on this day.
It’s certainly good news for the Colts that Collins isn’t playing, but exactly how it plays out will be fascinating to watch.
Why Nico Collins Isn’t Playing Today Vs. Colts For Texans