Across the past NFL season, it was a campaign for Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins that truly began to cement himself among some of the league's best wideouts.
In just 12 games of action, Collins logged his second-straight season of logging over 65 catches and 1,000 yards receiving, while also hauling in seven touchdowns and securing his first career Pro Bowl selection. All in all, a notably successful fourth-year campaign.
But when stacking him up against the entire collective of NFL receivers, where exactly does Collins land ahead of next season?
In the eyes of Pro Football Focus and analyst Trevor Sikkema, Collins finds himself considerably high on that totem pole of NFL wide receivers.
In PFF's latest ranking stacking up the top 25 wide receivers in the NFL, Collins was placed right within the second tier of top wideouts at number seven.
"Collins has now posted back-to-back seasons with elite receiving grades — 91.4 in 2023 and 92.3 in 2024," Sikkema wrote. "His combination of size, speed and route running makes him a true No. 1 option. Over the past two seasons, his 95.3 receiving grade against single coverage ranks second only to A.J. Brown."
The only names lying ahead of Collins were a strong group. AJ Brown was ranked as the best receiver in the NFL, followed by Justin Jefferson, Ja'Marr Chase, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Puka Nacua, and CeeDee Lamb. Not bad for the Texans' third-rounder from four summers ago.
Now, it's hard to find a list of the top receivers in the game without seeing Collins in that top ten. At 26 years old, his versatility and route running prowess has risen to some of the best in the league, and he's beginning to find that respect he deserves one of being the best in his craft coming his way.
Could Collins find his way further up the ladder heading into year five? It's far from out of the question, and if both Stroud and the Texans' offensive line can see some steps forward compared to how last season ended for this group, it could inevitably mean great things for the future of Collins in this offense.
