Fantasy Football Dynasty Rookie Mock: Jayden Higgins (Pick 2.04)

To summarize the Houston Texans wide receiver room in one sentence, the unit entering this fall appears to be 2024 Pro Bowler Nico Collins and then everybody else.

In the everybody else category, though, the Texans hope one of their young Iowa State rookies emerges.

Houston drafted both of the top two receivers from the Cyclones 2024 offense. But which one is more poised for a role next to Collins?

The safe bet is second-round pick Jayden Higgins. That’s why at No. 16 overall in a PPR rookie dynasty draft, and with the fourth selection of the second round, our mock draft has Higgins coming off the board.

If the wide receiver room is completely healthy, fantasy managers would have more than just Collins to count on in Houston. But Tank Dell suffered a knee injury last December that could potentially sidelined him for all of 2025.

Therefore, who the Texans start opposite Collins could be a lot of different receivers. I write this for a lot of rookies, but it’s particularly critical that fantasy managers follow Houston’s receiver room during training camp and the preseason to get an idea of what to expect for WR2.

Houston doesn’t have to go young with Higgins or his college teammate, Jaylin Noel. The Texans traded for veteran Christian Kirk over the offseason and also still have fourth-year receiver John Metchie III.

During his final season with the Jacksonville Jaguars, though, Kirk averaged just 47.4 yards per game. That was his lowest output since 2020. Kirk also missed the second half of last season with a broken collarbone.

At least the injury shouldn’t impact his play in 2025. But Kirk has to prove this summer he’s a bounce back candidate at 28 years old in a new offense.

Metchie has the most familiarity with the Houston offense and the most work with quarterback C.J. Stroud. Metchie has the pedigree too, as a former 2022 second-round pick.

But the fourth-year wideout has started just three games in his career. In 29 NFL contests, he has 40 catches for 412 yards.

The question marks with Dell, Kirk and Metchie explain why the Texans drafted two receivers. Noel led Iowa State in receiving yards and yards per catch last season, but it was Higgins off the board first — to Houston at No. 34 overall in the second round.

If fantasy managers would rather have the boom-or-bust rookie, then they should target Noel. Last season, he averaged 14.9 yards per reception, and he’s considered the bigger NFL deep threat because of his speed.

He’s also likely to be available later in dynasty drafts.

“Houston gives C.J. Stroud another weapon to test a defense over the long field, and the Texans will try to get him in space to take advantage of his ability to make plays with his legs,” wrote SI on Fantasy’s Shawn Childs.

Keep in mind, though, Collins already provides big plays for the Houston offense. Over the past two seasons, Collins has averaged 15.6 yards per reception. In a perfect world, the Texans need a chain-mover opposite Collins.

This season, that could be Kirk. If that’s the case, Noel could be the Texans’ No. 3 receiver as another big-play threat.

But if Higgins outplays Kirk this summer, he could be due for a sizable role as a rookie.

It’s also not like Higgins can’t make plays downfield. Last season, he averaged 13.6 yards per reception and scored more touchdowns than Noel (nine versus eight).

“He’s smooth but physical in his routes and does a nice job of creating pockets of separation with force and strength,” NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein wrote. “He has mismatch qualities from the slot with body control and a catch radius that make him a menace on jump balls downfield.

“He won’t outrun cornerbacks and is nothing special after the catch, but his size, ball skills and competitiveness create a profile of production as a future contributor in three-wide sets.”

Based on that analysis, it sounds as if Higgins could have a chance to be the team’s WR3. That would mean having fantasy relevancy despite not outplaying Kirk this summer.

In conclusion, there’s a lot of moving parts to Houston’s receiver room. Fantasy managers have to do their homework before drafting any of the team’s receivers not named Collins.

But in dynasty formats, Higgins has a strong chance of being a top 20 selection based on the opportunity he will have in training camp.