Trent McDuffie and company understand the Texans’ pass game centers around Collins.
When the Kansas City Chiefs’ defense takes the field against the Houston Texans in the Divisional round, a lot of focus will be on wide receiver Nico Collins.
He is the primary target for quarterback C.J. Stroud — especially with wide receivers Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell suffering season-ending injuries at different times this year. In the Wild Card win over the Los Angeles Chargers, the Texans’ offense had one of its most productive games of the season; Collins was the catalyst with 122 yards and a touchdown.
Chiefs’ defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has always prepared his coverage unit to account for Collins. He emphasized that to reporters during his press conference on Wednesday.
“No matter who ends up on [Collins], all 11 sets of eyes on defense need to know where he is,” Spagnuolo asserted. “He’s what we call a ‘game wrecker,’ and if you let a game wrecker on offense wreck the game, it’s not going to be good.”
The fourth-year receiver earned his first Pro Bowl nod this year after eclipsing 1,000 receiving yards for the second consecutive regular season. He has had plenty of explosive performances this season, but the matchup with the Chiefs in Week 16 was not one of them.
There was a lot of focused help defense from the #Chiefs safeties when Nico Collins did try to work across the field
Expect a lot of bracket coverage & safeties coming down to pick up Collins from the opposite side pic.twitter.com/gSlPgAFIJi
— Ron Kopp Jr. (@Ron_Kopp) January 16, 2025
The Chiefs’ 27-19 win over Houston featured one of Collins’ least efficient games of the season. He was held to 60 yards over 10 targets, catching seven passes with no touchdowns. It was a team effort by the Chiefs’ coverage unit: no one cornerback primarily matched up with Collins, and safeties were constantly positioning themselves in help defense.
#Chiefs severely limited Nico Collins’ production over the middle of the field in Wk16
On the opening drive, Williams’ stays in good trailing position, combining with Hicks to tighten the throwing window
Stroud has no margin for error, so a slightly high throw gets INT’d pic.twitter.com/yJBI5w9H4d
— Ron Kopp Jr. (@Ron_Kopp) January 16, 2025
That was the case on the Texans’ opening drive. On third down, Chiefs’ cornerback Joshua Williams is aligned in press-man coverage against Collins on the outside. At the snap, Williams works into trailing technique, knowing he has help from rookie safety Jaden Hicks over the top.
As Collins works to the middle of the field, Williams’ positioning and Hicks’ break on the route tighten the throwing window. That eliminates the margin for error on the throw; when the pass comes in slightly high, Hicks is in a great position to intercept it.
In Wk16, Collins only had space to work with on routes to the sideline where it’s harder for safeties to be there in help#Chiefs were focused on taking away in-breaking routes. Just before halftime, McDuffie holds inside leverage, jumping on the hurried throw to Collins’ slant pic.twitter.com/xBNfayW0ty
— Ron Kopp Jr. (@Ron_Kopp) January 16, 2025
Some of Collins’ most productive plays occurred when the Chiefs could not provide safety help to the cornerback. The first two plays in this clip show Collins winning to the sideline, away from help defenders.
However, the third play shows Chiefs’ cornerback Trent McDuffie making a play on his own, lined up against Collins. Collins attempts to run a slant from the slot, with McDuffie holding inside leverage. That deters Collins from running through the route, but pressure up front hurries Stroud’s throwing decision.
It is another example of needing a team effort to limit Collins, but the pivotal moments may come down to the Chiefs’ best cornerback versus Houston’s best receiver. McDuffie is looking forward to that challenge.
“I love going against players like this,” McDuffie told reporters during a press conference on Tuesday. “I call him a complete receiver: he’s big, he’s physical, he’s fast, he has good hands.
“You can tell his connection with C.J. is at an all-time high, they’re kind of clicking on all cylinders. He’s their number-one receiver. That’s really why you want to play this game: to go against the best competition in a game that means a lot in the playoffs. [I’m] excited to go against him… I’m ready to go compete.”
According to Pro Football Focus, the Week 16 contest featured McDuffie matched up with Collins on four targets: Collins produced five yards over three catches, none resulting in a first down.
#Chiefs were all over the Texans’ perimeter screens in the Wk16 matchup
Would be surprised if Houston features these in the game plan again pic.twitter.com/KTkHz9RP9c
— Ron Kopp Jr. (@Ron_Kopp) January 16, 2025
Two of those completions were quick attempts by Houston to get the ball into Collins’ hands on the perimeter. The Chiefs’ secondary firmly handled those perimeter screens, which may dissuade Houston from keeping the play calls in the game plan ahead of the Divisional round.
The Chiefs’ defense has been susceptible to explosive pass plays throughout this season. Clearly, Collins is Houston’s best chance at creating those big gains, so the Chiefs will account for him accordingly.