Being a rookie in the NFL is not easy, by any means, especially if you're a rookie who has big expectations on your shoulders. The Houston Texans have some rookies who don't necessarily have big expectations, but are expected to play big roles.
And, they are expected to play big roles on a team that has aspirations of winning the Super Bowl. They have made the playoffs two straight seasons, with a win over the Cleveland Browns and a loss to the Baltimore Ravens in head coach DeMeco Ryans' first season, and a win over the Los Angeles Chargers and a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs last season.
So, to get over that hump of the second round, or their second game in the postseason, they will need some help from the rookies. One of the guys they will rely on a good amount is rookie wide receiver Jayden Higgins, who has already drawn some comparisons to his teammate Nico Collins.
Higgins is a big body receiver who runs very crisp routes and has an underrated level of athleticism him. But that big frame didn't matter one bit during training camp practice on Tuesday.
Texans rookie Jayden Higgins gets his 'Welcome to the NFL' moment in training camp from Derek Stingley
Higgins is about 6'4", 220 pounds. So, he's a bigger guy at the position, but bigger doesn't mean that the smaller guys can't hit you hard. At training camp, he got hit pretty hard by Derek Stingley and Jalen Pitre, and credit to him, Higgins got right up.
But that doesn't mean he won't feel it in the morning when he wakes up.
Quarterback C.J. Stroud hit him on what looked to be a comeback route, and as he was going for the ball, Pitre and Stingley absolutely laid into him. The ball then fell out of his hands, and, of course, the two defensive backs started celebrating.
These are the types of moments when rookies really realize that they aren't playing against other kids anymore -- these are grown men. Hits like that will only be good for Higgins and his development.
