Former Clay-Chalkville High School standout Nico Collins opened the NFL season last week by catching six passes for 117 yards as the Houston Texans defeated the Indianapolis Colts 29-27.
Collins stepped up from those numbers in Game 2 on Sunday night as he had eight receptions for 135 yards and one touchdown in the Texans’ 19-13 victory over the Chicago Bears.
Collins scored on a 28-yard pass from quarterback C.J. Stroud as the Texans took a 10-3 lead with 14:55 left in the first half.
Including last season’s regular-season finale, Collins has had more than 100 receiving yards in his past three regular-season outings.
Collins was among the 33 players from Alabama high schools and colleges (excluding Alabama and Auburn) who got on the field on the second Sunday of the NFL’s 105th season.
Eight other former state players were involved in the Chicago-Houston game:
· Bears fullback Khari Blasingame (Buckhorn) was designated as a game-day inactive.
· Texans wide receiver Tank Dell (Alabama A&M) had one reception that lost 3 yards and three rushing attempts that gained 16 yards.
· Gerald Everett (UAB/South Alabama) started at tight end for the Bears. Everett had two receptions that netted 1 yard.
· Tytus Howard (Monroe County, Alabama State) started at right offensive tackle for the Texans.
· Bears wide receiver Velus Jones Jr. (Saraland) was designated as a game-day inactive.
· Kamari Lassiter (American Christian) started at cornerback for the Texans. Lassiter made four tackles and intercepted one pass. In his second NFL game, Lassiter got his first interception when he picked off Chicago quarterback Caleb Williams at the Houston 48-yard line and returned it 9 yards to the Chicago 43 with 12:55 left to play.
· Bears cornerback Reddy Steward (Austin, Troy) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Jimmie Ward (Davidson) started at safety for the Texans. Ward made seven tackles.
In the other Sunday games:
Las Vegas Raiders 26, Baltimore Ravens 23
· Raiders running back Ameer Abdullah (Homewood) had two rushing attempts for 1 yard, two receptions for 1 yard and two kickoff returns for 60 yards.
· Raiders cornerback Jakorian Bennett (McGill-Toolen) made two tackles and broke up two passes.
· Raiders quarterback Carter Bradley (South Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Ravens wide receiver Malik Cunningham (Park Crossing) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Ravens nose tackle Michael Pierce (Daphne, Samford) shared a sack.
Los Angeles Chargers 26, Carolina Panthers 3
· Chargers safety A.J. Finley (St. Paul’s Episcopal) made one tackle.
· Michael Jackson (Spain Park) started at cornerback for the Panthers. Jackson made three tackles.
· Panthers tight end Jordan Matthews (Madison Academy) did not record any stats.
· Chargers running back Kimani Vidal (Troy) was designated as a game-day inactive.
New Orleans Saints 44, Dallas Cowboys 19
· Jalen Tolbert (McGill-Toolen, South Alabama) started at wide receiver for the Cowboys. Tolbert had six receptions for 82 yards. Tolbert hit career single-game highs for receptions and receiving yards, and he made a circus catch for a 39-yard gain.
· Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (Lee-Montgomery) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20, Detroit Lions 16
· Buccaneers cornerback Keenan Isaac (Midfield, Alabama State) did not record any stats.
· Lions defensive tackle Brodric Martin (Northridge, North Alabama) is on injured reserve and not eligible play.
Green Bay Packers 16, Indianapolis Colts 10
· Packers offensive tackle Kadeem Telfort (UAB) did not record any stats.
Cleveland Browns 18, Jacksonville Jaguars 13
· Jaguars defensive end DJ Coleman (Jacksonville State) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Browns linebacker Mohamoud Diabate (Auburn High) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Browns safety Chris Edmonds (Samford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Josh Hines-Allen (Abbeville) started at defensive end for the Jaguars. Hines-Allen made four tackles, recorded one sack, registered four quarterback hits and broke up a pass.
· Za’Darius Smith (Greenville) started at defensive end for the Browns. Smith did not record any stats.
· Browns wide receiver Kadarius Toney (Blount) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Browns linebacker Nathaniel Watson (Maplesville) did not record any stats.
· Browns quarterback Jameis Winston (Hueytown) had 4 yards on two rushing attempts. Winston came in to run to convert two fourth-down quarterback sneaks into first downs.
· Browns defensive end Alex Wright (Elba, UAB) made three tackles and recorded one sack.
Minnesota Vikings 23, San Francisco 49ers 17
· Forty-Niners offensive tackle Chris Hubbard (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Forty-Niners cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. (South Alabama) was designated as a game-day inactive.
· Vikings defensive back Bobby McCain (Oxford) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Vikings quarterback Nick Mullens (Spain Park) dressed but did not play in the game.
Seattle Seahawks 23, New England Patriots 20 (OT)
· Patriots center Jake Andrews (Stanhope Elmore, Troy) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Marcus Jones (Enterprise, Troy) started at cornerback for the Patriots. Jones made six tackles, broke up one pass and returned two punts for 24 yards.
· Patriots safety Dell Pettus (Sparkman, Troy) did not record any stats.
· Seahawks outside linebacker Jamie Sheriff (South Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
New York Jets 24, Tennessee Titans 17
· Quincy Williams (Wenonah) started at linebacker for the Jets. Williams tied for the team lead with nine tackles and recovered one fumble. Williams recovered a fumble at the New York 12-yard line with 8:40 left in the second half with the Jets trailing 7-0.
Washington Commanders 21, New York Giants 18
· Cor’Dale Flott (Saraland) started at cornerback for the Giants. Flott made five tackles.
· Rakeem Nunez-Roches (Central-Phenix City) started at defensive tackle for the Giants. Nunez-Roches made three tackles.
· Commanders safety Jeremy Reaves (South Alabama) did not record any stats.
· Commanders offensive tackle Trent Scott (Lee-Huntsville) did not record any stats.
Arizona Cardinals 41, Los Angeles Rams 10
· Cardinals wide receiver Tejhaun Palmer (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Starling Thomas V (Ramsay, UAB) started at cornerback for the Cardinals. Thomas made four tackles.
· Rams cornerback Darious Williams (UAB) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
Pittsburgh Steelers 13, Denver Broncos 6
· Broncos cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine (Spanish Fort) was designated as a game-day inactive.
· Steelers cornerback Zyon Gilbert (Jeff Davis) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Steelers linebacker Jeremiah Moon (Hoover) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· George Pickens (Hoover) started at wide receiver for the Steelers. Pickens had two receptions for 29 yards.
· Broncos cornerback Tremon Smith (Saks) did not record any stats.
· Steelers punter Corliss Waitman (South Alabama) averaged 53.0 yards on eight punts with a 43.0-yard net. Waitman had three touchbacks and two punts that pinned Denver at its 15-yard line.
· Steelers wide receiver Quez Watkins (Athens) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Kansas City Chiefs 26, Cincinnati Bengals 25
· Bengals defensive end Cedric Johnson (Davidson) was designated as a game-day inactive.
· Bengals kicker Evan McPherson (Fort Payne) made four field goals and one extra point, but he missed an extra point to the right after Cincinnati’s second touchdown. McPherson made a field goal of 22 yards with 10:41 left in the first quarter, 33 yards with 4:19 left in the first half, 48 yards with 1:33 left in the first half and 53 yards with 9:28 left in the game.
· Chiefs wide receiver Justyn Ross (Central-Phenix City) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Cam Taylor-Britt (Park Crossing) started at cornerback for the Bengals. Taylor-Britt made two tackles, intercepted one pass and broke up another pass. Taylor-Britt made his fifth career interception when he picked off Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes at the Cincinnati 34-yard line on the final play of the third quarter.
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· Chiefs wide receiver Montrell Washington (Samford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Week 2 started on Thursday night, when the Buffalo Bills defeated the Miami Dolphins 31-10.
Week 2 concludes on Monday, when the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles square off at 7:15 p.m. CDT at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. 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.
