Reviewing rookie Jayden Higgins senior year film
Few things are as unpredictable as a Houston Texans draft. The Texans came into the draft with seven pick and only stayed put for one of those selections. The first of those picks was Jayden Higgins the wide receiver from Iowa State.
He is the subject of our sixth film analysis of the rookie class. The second round wide receiver is slated to have an immediate impact on this offense desperately in need of a star alongside Nico Collins.
Higgins has been compered to Collins as well as Drake London due to his size, catch radius, and route running finesse. We’ll see just how far he stacks up.
Past Texans 2025 Draft Pick Film Reviews:
One of the godsends for this series has been Just the Tape’s YouTube channel that documents every target for several of the top receivers.
When you watch enough film, certain players habits will make you chuckle. Its the weaponized incompetencies of playing college football. I’ve never seen it before, but when the ball is in the air and he’s in the end zone facing tight coverage, he’ll jump in the air, kick his legs out, and let the ball come into his body. And it works. Ugly? It’s heinous, but the real question is whether the Texans will tweak it to improve his success against longer NFL corners or stick with what’s been effective.
One area of growth for Higgins is his body positioning on deep routes. In particular, he doesn’t consistently frame himself to put the corner in his pocket. This creates jump balls and slows him down if the ball has any air on it. Granted, Iowa State’s QB couldn’t throw the ball downfield with any zip, but it occurred in every game I watched and causes incompletions that could have been 30-40 yard gains.
An under-appreciated trait is he’s willing to run routes over the middle of the field but knows how to orient his body to avoid big hits. He runs at full speed with shoulders turned towards QB, which opens up the window the QB can throw to without losing the timing of the throw. His ability to run over the middle of the field creates a great combination as he can make his living over the middle in an offense with Chrisitan Kirk and Nico Collins who can live on the boundaries.
Although, while he ran a 4.47 40 yard dash at the NFL Combine, that speed doesn’t exude himself on the field. Particularly when he’s running in-braking routes,
Jacob Parrish from K State is an underrated corner in this draft. He can play inside and outside and only gave up 3 catches on 8 targets against Iowa State.
A few clips vs. Jaylin Noel and Jayden Higgins pic.twitter.com/NkpxQ1CJp7
— Marcus Johnson (@TheMarcJohnNFL) April 10, 2025
One of the film studies I was most intrigued with was his play against scrappy corner Jacob Parrish. Parish is only 5-10, but is an extremely physical corner who ran a 4.35 forty yard dash.
Higgins’ big touchdown (9:00) wasn’t against Parrish. Parrish did a good job disrupting Higgins’ routes before he could get into them all game and help hold Higgins to his lowest yardage all season. Higgins did cook Parrish at 1:16:05 but couldn’t haul in a rushed pass. One issue I noticed is when he works up the field and establishes outside leverage, he continues to fade towards the sideline, which tightens the window for the QB to throw to. At the 35:40 mark, you’ll see Higgins outright embarrass his defender off the line of scrimmage, but allow him back into the play to disrupt the touchdown due to his running angle downfield. Correcting this will capitalize on his speed and ability to win off the snap.
His routes feel more polished than WRs that went early in round two last year. While last class had more quality receivers, Higgins release package and frame surpass players such as Keon Coleman, Xavier Legette, and Ja’Lynn Polk.
Strengths:
- NFL-level release package
- Great catch radius – consistently catches ball outside frame
- Average depth of target is 13.3 yards – catches ball well down field
- Only seven drops on 350 targets
- Dominant in win over rival Iowa with eight catches and a touchdown
Weaknesses:
- Due to height, not great at curl, breaking, and out routes. Anything where his momentum has to be completely stopped and he has to turn towards the sideline
- Low YAC. Not agile with ball in his hands nor creative
- Opposition facing Iowa State wasn’t always first class
- Contested catch is impressive but form may not work in NFL
Fit in Houston:
As a young wide receiver, Higgins has the tools to become a high-end WR2 in the league. He pairs well with the current cast and has flexibility to play anywhere on the field. While other analysts compare him to Nico Collins or Drake London, he reminds me of a lesser Tee Higgins. The route nuance, top-end speed, and catch radius are all three characteristics of an NFL receiver. If he can improve getting in and out of his breaks with his tall frame he will accelerate his growth considerably.