On Friday, Houston designated Collins to return to practice after spending the past four weeks on injured reserve with a hamstring injury.
The Texans (6-3) listed Collins as questionable on their injury report ahead of their “Sunday Night Football” matchup against the Detroit Lions (7-1).
Before suffering his injury, Collins led the NFL in receiving yards (567). He has been out since Week 5 after injuring his hamstring on a 67-yard touchdown reception during a 23-20 win over the Buffalo Bills.
Since his injury, the Texans’ offense has averaged 24.8 points per game (12th in the NFL), but the passing attack has suffered, producing 158 passing yards per game (30th).
While Collins was out, All-Pro receiver Stefon Diggs suffered a season-ending knee injury in a 23-20 Week 8 win over the Indianapolis Colts, meaning quarterback CJ Stroud has been out. without his two main objectives for a game and a half.
Since Collins’ injury, Stroud’s production has declined; He ranks 17th in yards (754), 19th in touchdowns (4) and 18th in completion percentage (55%) over the past four weeks. In the first five weeks under Collins, the second-year quarterback was third in yards (1,385), tied for 10th in touchdowns (7) and 10th in passer rating (98.2).
Also for Houston, receiver Tank Dell was limited in practice Friday with a back injury and is questionable against Detroit. Defensive end Will Anderson, who has 7.5 sacks, was ruled out with a sprained ankle he suffered in a 21-13 loss to the New York Jets in Week 9.
