Should I start Tee Higgins or Nico Collins in Week 9?

The market-based projections

Tee Higgins's market-based projection is 16.5 PPR points a game, built from 3 markets across 13 market sources. That is the 11th highest figure of the 213 players with a market-based projection.

Nico Collins's market-based projection is 14.9 PPR points a game, built from 3 markets across 7 market sources. That is the 18th highest figure of the 213 players with a market-based projection.

Where the draft room stands

Live drafts hold no current pick on Tee Higgins, and the board ranks him 4th overall on the rest of his evidence.

Live drafts hold no current pick on Nico Collins, and the board ranks him 10th overall on the rest of his evidence.

This season so far

Through Week 8, Tee Higgins has been on the field for 80 percent of CIN snaps, drawn 23 percent of the targets and had 7 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 15 of the offence's 61 third down targets, had 0 of its 17 chances inside the five and seen 11 of its 43 two minute targets.

His 61 targets have averaged 13.6 air yards.

In Week 5 against MIA he caught 2 of 4 targets for 22 yards and did not score.

In Week 7 against BAL he caught 6 of 7 targets for 148 yards and scored 1 touchdown.

In Week 8 against TEN he caught 10 of 11 targets for 155 yards and scored 2 touchdowns.

Through Week 7, Nico Collins has been on the field for 71 percent of HOU snaps, drawn 22 percent of the targets and had 13 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 8 of the offence's 34 third down targets, had 0 of its 12 chances inside the five and seen 4 of its 26 two minute targets.

His 35 targets have averaged 12.5 air yards.

In Week 5 against TEN he caught 5 of 7 targets for 56 yards and did not score.

In Week 6 against JAX he carried 1 time for 5 yards, caught 3 of 5 targets for 74 yards and did not score.

In Week 7 against NYG he caught 2 of 5 targets for 6 yards and did not score.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025 Tee Higgins played 15 games and scored 211.6 PPR points, 14.1 a game, finishing WR15.

He caught 59 of 98 targets for 846 yards and 11 touchdowns, with 14 red zone targets.

That came to 6-7 targets a game, a 60 percent catch rate and 14.3 yards a catch.

He was on the field for 80 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

In 2025 Nico Collins played 15 games and scored 226.2 PPR points, 15.1 a game, finishing WR8.

He caught 71 of 120 targets for 1117 yards and 6 touchdowns, with 16 red zone targets.

That came to 8.0 targets a game, a 59 percent catch rate and 15.7 yards a catch.

He was on the field for 77 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

Both were available for 15 games that season.

Head to head

In 2025 Nico Collins scored 15.1 PPR points a game and Tee Higgins 14.1, 1.0 a game between them.

Tee Higgins finished WR15 that year and Nico Collins WR8.

Nico Collins had 22 more targets than Tee Higgins, 120 to 98.

Nico Collins had 271 more receiving yards than Tee Higgins, 1117 to 846.

This season Tee Higgins holds the bigger snap share, 80 percent against 71 percent.

This season Tee Higgins holds the bigger target share, 23 percent against 22 percent.

Byes and availability

Tee Higgins is off in Week 6 and Nico Collins in Week 8, so either can cover the other's bye.

What would change the answer

1.6 points a game is the entire case. The market restates it every week, and a line that moves moves the order with it.

The draft market is the half that is missing: when live drafts hold these two again they can order them differently from the projection, and this page will follow the drafts rather than the market-based projection when they do.