HOUSTON – Jayden Higgins hasn’t carved out a major role in the Texans’ offense despite an extremely efficient catch ratio and one of the largest catch radiuses in the league.
There are signs that Higgins’ role is starting to increase, though, in the playbook of offensive coordinator Nick Caley.
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The rookie wide receiver caught a season-high four passes for 32 yards on four targets in a dominant win over the Baltimore Ravens. That performance came on the heels of his first NFL touchdown on a 24-yard pass from Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud against the Tennessee Titans.
“For me, really just every time I get a chance to go out there and make a play, just making sure I’m ready for my moment,” Higgins told KPRC 2. “Definitely just making sure that I’m doing everything right during the week and prepared to play. Really exciting, ready to go out there and make some plays.”
After his first five games, the towering second-round draft pick from Iowa State has nine receptions for 121 yards and one score on 10 targets.
In his NFL regular-season debut against the Los Angeles Rams, Higgins caught two passes for 32 yards on three targets. The one he didn’t get was an interception by Stroud where he could have made a better effort to knock down the football.
The rookie wide receiver caught a season-high four passes for 32 yards on four targets in a dominant win over the Baltimore Ravens. That performance came on the heels of his first NFL touchdown on a 24-yard pass from Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud against the Tennessee Titans.
Since that game, Higgins has continued to progress.
Now, he’s getting ready for his second Monday night game of the season. The Texans are on a two-game winning streak heading into a road game against the Seattle Seahawks.
“Yep, really exciting,” Higgins said. “Ready to go out there and and make some plays. Definitely a crazy environment."
A Texans win would extend their winning streak to three games and even their record.
“It’s definitely very critical,” Higgins said. “Every game is super critical. You gotta take it one week at a time and just go out there and execute when you get the moment.”
Kickoff is at 9 p.m. Central, a late start that breaks up the routine for the Texans. How does Higgins plan to handle the night game?
“I can’t take a nap,” he said. “I’m too excited. I’ll be good. Whenever the ball is kicked off, I’m ready to go. That’s why we play the game. The environment is gonna be crazy electric.”
The 22-year-old has a rare blend of size, speed, athleticism and polish to his game. At 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, Higgins has NBA guard size, sprinter’s speed (4.47 40-yard dash), leaping ability with a 39-inch vertical leap and a growing repertoire of moves.
Higgins caught 87 passes for 1,183 yards and nine touchdowns last season as the Cyclones’ go-to receiver.
One advantage Higgins has going for him is an obvious one: his superior size.
A former basketball point guard growing up in South Florida, Higgins isn’t going to encounter any cornerbacks as tall as him. It’s been a long time since the day of Philadelphia Eagles 6-foot-4 standout corner Bobby Taylor. Generally, cornerbacks range in height from 5-foot-10 to 6-foot-1 and most don’t weigh more than 200 pounds.
Like Nico Collins, Higgins is an inviting target for quarterback C.J. Stroud.
"I think the biggest thing for me being a tall guy is just to go out there and dominate each and every play,“ Higgins said. ”I feel like some of those big plays like C.J. throwing the ball up, I can really excel at just making the play over top of those guys. And really just being physical with my hands, like you said, some of the smaller guys have a better leverage and things like that. So, being physical my hands and my releases can definitely help me and gets me open all the time."
Back in his basketball days at Westminster Christian in Palmetto Bay, Florida, Higgins ran the show as the point guard. His style: elevate and get to the basket.
“I was a little bit of everything, honestly, but I think my last year I was more so a slasher, finisher,” Higgins said. “Get to the rim and dunk the ball, for sure.”
Between his time at both colleges as a classic late bloomer out of high school, Higgins was a prolific receiver. He caught 227 career passes for 3,317 yards and 25 touchdown catches.
Higgins landed a history-making $11.7 million fully guaranteed contract, the first ever for a second-round draft pick, after being a former two-star recruit. Higgins went overlooked at nearly every stage of the talent evaluation process until the most important one: the NFL draft.
Before Higgins emerged, though, as the Texans’ top draft pick as the 34th overall selection and signing the first fully guaranteed deal for a second-round draft pick in NFL history, he was told no several times by the college football world.
Being underrated, being an afterthought, has provided a lot of motivational fuel for Higgins.
“For me, at the end of the day, it’s always been a look at yourself in the mirror type of thing,” Higgins said. “I’m just trying to be the best version of myself. I’m going to pick certain people’s brain and see what they do well and try to take it. I’m trying to be the best version of myself and show that when you’re out there on the field.”
It became evident that Higgins needed a greater challenge athletically than what he was getting at Eastern Kentucky at a lower level of college football. After catching 58 passes for 757 yards and 10 touchdowns as a sophomore, Higgins decided it was time to enter the portal.
Higgins made an immediate impact for the Cyclones with 53 catches for 983 yards and six touchdowns in his first season in the Big 12 as an honorable-mention all-conference selection. He took it up a notch last year in his final college football season as he caught 87 passes for 1,185 yards and nine touchdowns.
“He’s one of the best I’ve been around, and that’s where you gotta have a little bit of confidence,” said Noah Pauley, the Cyclones’ receivers coach and passing game coordinator. “I just knew he was going to be a high-end pick and whatever team that got him was going be extremely pleased because of obviously what he brings on the football field, but just how he carries himself off the field and how he prepares himself and how he just he always plays and does everything with a chip on his shoulder.
“Jayden has this mindset where whether he’s playing the slot or playing outside that he’s gonna find a way to get open and go make the play and he consistently did that for us. Wanting to play at the highest level like he just keeps pushing himself and trying to prove others wrong. So, I think where he ended up is a perfect spot. I think it’s going to be a great fit for him, and I’m excited to see what he does within that offense.”
Higgins was selected for the prestigious Senior Bowl all-star game, where he met with the Texans, before excelling at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis as he had a formal interview with the defending AFC South champions.
Higgins is the equivalent of the Texans’ unofficial first-round draft pick. They treated him that way contractually by guaranteeing his entire four-year deal for skill, injury and salary cap in a deal negotiated by Chris Cabott, the CEO of Equity Sports. The unprecedented contract includes a $5.149 million signing bonus.
“It feels great,” Higgins said. “All props to my agent, Chris Cabott. At the end of the day, I just wanted to come here and compete and show that I belong here. My expectations are to compete. Take it day by day, wherever that leads me, that is going to lead me, but I am always going to put my best foot forward.”
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com
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