The week leading up to the offseason program, Nico Collins was in Atlanta, Georgia working with QB Davis Mills and other members of the Houston Texans offense. At the end of the 2021 season, Collins made a goal to get better in the offseason and work on timing and chemistry.
"It was a great opportunity for all of the wideouts, tight ends to go out there and play, get the timing down right, get the footwork because we just ended our season kind of early, didn't like that feeling," Collins said. "But it was a great time, to get back on the field, get that juice back going, get the timing back right so we could come out here prepared for OTAs."
The Texans are currently in the midst of their OTAs at the Houston Methodist Training Center. Offensive Coordinator Pep Hamilton says timing and chemistry will be especially important for second-year pass catchers like Collins and TE Brevin Jordan to make the Year 1 to Year 2 leap.
"It's going to be important that Nico and Brevin and some of the other young pass receiving guys that we have work together with our quarterback to develop more of a sense of continuity and that level of trust that we are going to need to be able to play fast and anticipate our throws and attack our opponents with rhythm and timing in our passing game," Hamilton said.
Collins, drafted in the third round (89th overall) of the 2021 NFL Draft, hopes to build on his rookie campaign with Mills, also now in his second season. Last year, Collins played in 14 games (eight starts), amassing 33 receptions for 446 yards (13.5 avg.) and one receiving touchdown. He recorded the fifth-most receiving yards by a rookie in Texans history.
This year, he will have a new offensive coordinator Hamilton and new position coach in Ben McDaniels, who is also the team's passing game coordinator.
"It's a new offense, new, new coaches," Collins said. "I feel like it's a great opportunity for everybody. I feel like now OTAs, we're going out here, get the timing down, right, find the things, what works and what doesn't work. I feel like it's a great opportunity to find everything out, you know? So we all here working. If everybody's here stacking days, getting better every day, I feel like that's what's going to count at the end of the day on Sundays."
The Texans wrap up OTA practices on June 9 and will hold a mandatory veteran minicamp June 14-16 at the Houston Methodist Training Center.
