Texans WR Jayden Higgins confirmed to have torn ACL, out for 2026 season

Houston Texans wide receiver Jayden Higgins is done for the 2026 season after an MRI confirmed a torn ACL, multiple team and national reporters confirmed Wednesday.

Rapoport reported the torn ACL on Wednesday, saying Higgins suffered the injury during Tuesday's joint practice against the Las Vegas Raiders. The 2026 second-round pick out of Colorado State went down with a leg injury and was helped off the field; coach DeMeco Ryans told reporters afterward there was "no update" on Higgins, and quarterback C.J. Stroud said at the time he thought Higgins "will be fine."

The diagnosis escalated quickly. On Wednesday, Texans beat writer Aaron Wilson reported the MRI confirmed the tear, citing a league source, and noted Higgins was "disappointed but in relatively good spirits" and plans to "come back on a mission to be even better than before." Wilson added that Houston will lean heavily on Nico Collins, Dalton Schultz, Jaylon Noel and Xavier Hutchinson, and pointed to a thin free-agent receiver market — with the possibility of more run-heavy game plans.

Wilson also floated a potential name to watch: veteran Brandin Cooks, who knows the Texans offense and "makes a lot of sense" as the team resets its receiver plans. Cooks is not currently under contract with Houston, and no move has been reported.

The 6-foot-4 Higgins was viewed as a breakout candidate in his first NFL season after the Texans invested a high pick in him this spring. Local reporter Jonathan Alexander called it "such a tough break for Higgins, who I thought was primed for a breakout season." With Higgins out, Houston's depth chart thins at a position the offense was counting on to take a step forward in C.J. Stroud's development.

The Texans open the regular season in early September; Higgins will now turn his focus to rehabilitation.