State NFL roundup: Nico Collins breaks out for Texans

Wide receiver Nico Collins had seven receptions for 168 yards and two touchdowns in the Houston Texans’ 30-6 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

The former Clay-Chalkville High School star scored two TDs for the first time in his career. In his third NFL season, Collins had four touchdowns among his 85 career receptions entering Sunday’s contest.

Collins caught a 2-yard toss from quarterback C.J. Stroud for the game’s first touchdown with 8:55 left in the first quarter and a 52-yard pass from Stroud for the game’s final touchdown with 3:39 left in the fourth quarter.

Collins eclipsed his previous best game, which came two weeks ago. He had seven receptions for 146 yards and one touchdown in a 31-20 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Sept. 17.

Collins also recovered a fumble by a teammate at NRG Stadium in Houston on Sunday.

After losing their first two games of 2023, the Texans have rebounded with back-to-back victories. Houston defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 37-17 last week.

Collins was among the 42 players from Alabama high schools and colleges (excluding Alabama and Auburn) who got on the field on the fourth Sunday of the NFL’s 104th season.

Five other former state players were involved in the Pittsburgh-Houston game:

· Steelers linebacker Kwon Alexander (Oxford) made four tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.

· Tank Dell (Alabama A&M) started at wide receiver for the Texans. Dell caught a 16-yard pass, gained 13 yards on two rushing attempts and returned two punts for 14 yards.

· Texans offensive tackle Tytus Howard (Monroe County, Alabama State) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play. Howard must miss at least the first four games of the season.

· George Pickens (Hoover) started at wide receiver for the Steelers. Pickens caught three passes for 25 yards.

· Jimmie Ward (Davidson) started at safety for the Texans. Ward made four tackles and forced a fumble, which Pittsburgh recovered.

In the other Sunday games:

Jacksonville Jaguars 23, Atlanta Falcons 7

· Josh Allen (Abbeville) started at weakside linebacker for the Jaguars. Allen recorded three sacks and forced a fumble on Atlanta’s final possession of the game. Allen has had one other three-sack game – three weeks ago versus the Indianapolis Colts in the opener of the 2023 season.

· Jaguars offensive lineman Chandler Brewer (Florence) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Jaguars defensive end DJ Coleman (Jacksonville State) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Falcons linebacker Tae Davis (Oxford) did not record any stats.

· Darious Williams (UAB) started at cornerback for the Jaguars. Williams made five tackles, intercepted a pass and broke up two others. Williams returned the interception 61 yards for a touchdown as Jacksonville took a 17-0 lead with 4:31 left in the first half.

· Jaguars center Darryl Williams (Bessemer City) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

Buffalo Bills 48, Miami Dolphins 20

· Tyreek Hill (West Alabama) started at wide receiver for the Dolphins. Hill had three receptions for 58 yards and a 14-yard run.

· Bills cornerback Siran Neal (Eufaula, Jacksonville State) made two tackles on special teams.

Minnesota Vikings 21, Carolina Panthers 13

· Vikings running back DeWayne McBride (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Vikings quarterback Nick Mullens (Spain Park) dressed but did not play.

Denver Broncos 31, Chicago Bears 28

· Bears defensive tackle Travis Bell (Jeff Davis) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Bears fullback Khari Blasingame (Buckhorn) did not record any stats.

· Bears wide receiver Velus Jones Jr. (Saraland) had a 10-yard run and made a tackle on special teams.

· Darnell Mooney (Gadsden City) started at wide receiver for the Bears. Mooney had four receptions for 51 yards.

· Broncos cornerback Tremon Smith (Saks) did not record any stats.

Baltimore Ravens 28, Cleveland Browns 3

· Browns linebacker Mohamoud Diabate (Auburn High) made one tackle on special teams.

· Ravens guard Tyrell Doss (Aliceville) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Jeremiah Moon (Hoover) started at outside linebacker for the Ravens, the first start of his career.

· Michael Pierce (Daphne, Samford) started at nose tackle for the Ravens.

· Za’Darius Smith (Greenville) started at defensive end for the Browns. Smith made one tackle.

· Browns wide receiver Austin Watkins (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Browns defensive end Alex Wright (Elba, UAB) made one tackle.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 26, New Orleans Saints 9

· Buccaneers cornerback Keenan Isaac (Midfield, Alabama State) did not record any stats in his NFL debut. An undrafted rookie, Isaac needed to be elevated from the practice squad to be eligible to play.

· Buccaneers wide receiver Cephus Johnson III (Davidson, South Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Buccaneers guard Logan Stenberg (James Clemens) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Saints quarterback Jameis Winston (Hueytown) came in for New Orleans’ final possession and was intercepted on his only pass. Saints No. 1 QB Derek Carr was questionable to play because of a shoulder injury, but he completed 23-of-37 passes for 127 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

Philadelphia Eagles 34, Washington Commanders 31 (OT)

· Reed Blankenship (West Limestone) started at safety for the Eagles. Blankenship made eight tackles and broke up two passes.

· James Bradberry (Pleasant Grove, Samford) started at cornerback for the Eagles. Bradberry made five tackles.

· Zach Cunningham (Pinson Valley) started at weakside linebacker for the Eagles. Cunningham led Philadelphia with 13 tackles.

· Nicholas Morrow (Huntsville) started at linebacker for the Eagles. Morrow made 11 tackles and recorded three sacks. Morrow equaled his career high for tackles with his fourth game with 11. But he entered Sunday’s contest with four career sacks, with no more than one in any game. Morrow also forced a fumble, which Washington recovered.

· Commanders safety Jeremy Reaves (South Alabama) made one tackle on special teams.

· Commanders offensive tackle Trent Scott (Lee-Huntsville) was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Eagles wide receiver Quez Watkins (Athens) was designated as a game-day inactive. A hamstring injury kept Watkins off the field for the second Sunday in a row.

Tennessee Titans 27, Cincinnati Bengals 3

· Titans defensive tackle Shakel Brown (Troy) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Titans cornerback Eric Garror (McGill-Toolen) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Bengals cornerback Allan George (Andalusia) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Bengals kicker Evan McPherson (Fort Payne) made his only kick – a 21-yard field goal – for the first points of the game.

· Titans linebacker Monty Rice (James Clemens) did not record any stats.

· Cam Taylor-Britt (Park Crossing) started at cornerback for the Bengals. Taylor-Britt made six tackles and forced a fumble, which Tennessee recovered.

Los Angeles Chargers 24, Las Vegas Raiders 17

· Raiders running back Ameer Abdullah (Homewood) had two receptions for 14 yards and made one tackle on special teams.

· Jakorian Bennett (McGill-Toolen) started at cornerback for the Raiders. Bennett made one tackle and broke up one pass.

· Gerald Everett (UAB/South Alabama) started at tight end for the Chargers. Everett caught two passes for 9 yards.

· Chargers safety A.J. Finley (St. Paul’s Episcopal) did not record any stats in his NFL debut.

· Raiders outside linebacker Malik Reed (Dothan) was designated as a game-day inactive. Reed is on the Las Vegas practice squad but had been elevated on Saturday to be eligible to play on Sunday.

· Nick Williams (Minor, Samford) started at defensive tackle for the Chargers. Williams made two tackles.

Dallas Cowboys 38, New England Patriots 3

· Patriots center Jake Andrews (Stanhope Elmore, Troy) did not record any stats.

· Patriots cornerback Malik Cunningham (Park Crossing) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Patriots defensive end Trey Flowers (Columbia) is on reserve/physically unable to perform and not eligible to play. Flowers must miss at least the first four games of the season.

· Patriots cornerback Marcus Jones (Enterprise, Troy) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Cowboys wide receiver Jalen Tolbert (McGill-Toolen, South Alabama) caught four passes for 53 yards.

· Patriots punter Corliss Waitman (South Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (Lee-Montgomery) recorded his first sack of the 2023 season.

San Francisco 49ers 35, Arizona Cardinals 16

· Forty-Niners cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. (South Alabama) is on reserve/physically unable to perform and not eligible to play. Luter must miss at least the first four games of the season.

· Cardinals cornerback Christian Matthew (Samford) did not record any stats.

· Cardinals cornerback Starling Thomas V (Ramsay, UAB) was designated as a game-day inactive.

Kansas City Chiefs 23, New York Jets 20

· Chiefs defensive end Neil Farrell Jr. (Murphy) was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Jets defensive end Bryce Huff (St. Paul’s Episcopal) recorded two quarterback hits.

· Chiefs quarterback Chris Oladokun (Samford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Chiefs running back La’Mical Perine (Theodore) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Chiefs tight end Gerrit Prince (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Chiefs wide receiver Justyn Ross (Central-Phenix City) did not record any stats.

· Chiefs wide receiver Kadarius Toney (Blount) caught two passes for 22 yards.

· Chiefs wide receiver Montrell Washington (Samford) returned a punt 10 yards.

· Quincy Williams (Wenonah) started at linebacker for the Jets. Williams made 13 tackles, recorded two tackles for loss, registered one quarterback hit and broke up two passes.

Week 4 started on Thursday night, when the Detroit Lions defeated the Green Bay Packers 34-20.

Week 4 concludes on Monday, when the Seattle Seahawks and New York Giants square off at 7:15 p.m. CDT at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. ABC and ESPN will televise the game.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.