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When is Nico Collins coming back? Will Nico Collins play again this season? Read about Nico Collins' return date and injury updates for 2026.
Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins (hamstring) has missed the last two games for his team after sustaining a hamstring strain in practice after Week 1. Houston has stumbled out of the gate to a 0-3 start to the season, and they need Collins back in the mix to get their offense going.
Collins' absence has also had a huge impact on his fantasy teams since most teams drafted him to be their top receiver. He delivered in Week 1, but his injury has left his managers scrambling the last two weeks.
When is Collins coming back? Will he miss most of the season? Let's dive in!
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Nico Collins Injury Update for Fantasy Football
Since picking up the injury in Wednesday's practice after Week 1, Collins has not been able to return to the practice field yet, but that is expected to change this week.
Coach DeMeco Ryans said that the Texans are “hopeful” to get Nico Collins back for their Week 4 matchup with the Cowboys. ESPN's Adam Schefter also reported that there is a "decent chance" that Collins will return this week.
When he initially sustained the Grade 1 hamstring, it was said to be a 2-to-3-week injury, which puts his potential return right on schedule. The team did not put Collins on IR, since it seemed the most likely scenario that he could return before four weeks.
The Texans' practice reports will be key to watch this week to see if Collins is limited or able to get to full practice. There is some risk of re-injury if he returns too quickly, but the team's record doesn't give him much margin for error.
Even though there is no guarantee that he'll be back in Week 4, all the signs seem to be pointing in that direction.
Nico Collins Has a Decent Chance to Return in Week 4 https://t.co/yyfqlQSp5Z
— RotoBaller NFL (@RotoBallerNFL) September 27, 2026
Nico Collins Fantasy Football Outlook
When he does return, Collins will step right back into his role as the team's primary pass-catcher, and with the running game struggling a little bit, he'll need to take on as much work as he can handle. He came back from a hamstring injury last year and resumed a big role right away, so if he's active in Week 4, he can be used as a low-end WR1 or high-end WR2.
While he has been out, Dalton Schultz has been a target magnet, totaling 15 catches on 17 targets in the two games he missed. Xavier Hutchinson, Kayshon Boutte, and Jared Wayne each got more work as well, but no wide receiver stood out as a threat to Collins going forward. Hutchinson will likely slide back to his second receiver role, while Boutte will likely remain a boom-or-bust deep threat.
Schultz will remain a fringe TE1, and Collins' return will boost QB C.J. Stroud to a solid QB2.
Who Should I Start Tool
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Week 4 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players: Nico Collins, Dalton Schultz, Xavier Hutchinson, Kayshon Boutte. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 4.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, player news, and enhanced search results with data to compare, with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circles), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 4 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 4(2026)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 4 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 4 for Nico Collins, Dalton Schultz, Xavier Hutchinson, Kayshon Boutte:
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