The Houston Texans sported one of the most anemic passing attacks in the entire league in 2022. Brandin Cooks, who is now a Dallas Cowboy, led the team in receiving with just 57 catches for 699 yards. 

It is a good bet that this group will be much better in 2023. John Metchie III is healthy, rookie Tank Dell has promise, and a couple of solid veterans in Noah Brown and Robert Woods were also brought in. 

However, one national media outlet thinks the biggest X-factor in the receiver room could be a guy who has been in Houston for two seasons already.

Zoltán Buday of Pro Football Focus recently picked one breakout player for each AFC team. 

When it came to the Texans, Buday picked third-year receiver Nico Collins. Collins only played in 10 games in 2022, starting in just seven, due to injury. Even in that limited time, Collins looked well on his way to becoming the No. 1 receiver the Texans have been desperately seeking. 

Collins caught 37 passes for 481 yards and two touchdowns. Even with missing so much time, Chris Moore and the aforementioned Cooks were the only Texans' receivers who outperformed that mark. 

Buday said the following regarding Collins:

Collins might have already had a breakout season in 2022 if not for a couple of injuries and below-par quarterback play. His 72.4 PFF grade ranked only 35th among wide receivers last season; however, passes going his way were completed only 56.9% of the time, the 10th-lowest rate in the NFL despite Collins not dropping a single target all season. In fact, he was just one of nine receivers not to drop a pass among players with at least 50 targets last season.

As Buday points out, Collins never drops catchable passes. The problem was, many of Collins' targets have been uncatchable. That should be less of a problem now considering new Texans' QB CJ Stroud is known for his pinpoint accuracy. 

If Collins can build chemistry with his new QB in 2023, expect big things.