Nico Collins' Big Day Helps Houston Texans Dominate Pittsburgh Steelers

The Houston Texans won in all three phases against the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday.

Wide receiver Nico Collins had 268 yards and two touchdowns, as the Houston Texans flat-out dominated the Pittsburgh Steelers 30-6 at NRG Stadium Sunday.

Quarterback C.J. Stroud connected with Collins on a 52-yard strike on third-and-7 with 3:39 on the clock to put the icing on the cake of Houston's (2-2) thrashing of Pittsburgh (2-2). 

Stroud and Collins connected in the first quarter after a flurry of penalties started and stopped the Texans' red zone trip, capping it off with a 2-yard pitch-and-catch.

Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins (12) scores a touchdown in the first quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday at NRG Stadium. Houston won 30-6 / USA TODAY Sports

Offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik dialed up some trickery in the fourth quarter, as Stroud pitched to running back Devin Singletary on the 6-yard line. Singletary jogged towards the sideline then lofted a pass to tight end Dalton Schultz in the back of the end zone, putting the game out of reach with just under 11 minutes to go.

However, Houston's defense won the day, holding Pittsburgh out of the end zone for the game — the first time they've kept an opponent without a touchdown since Oct. 9, 2022, against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Texans held the Steelers to 225 yards of total offense, which is the fewest they've allowed in a game since surrendering 262 against the Dolphins Nov. 7, 2021.

Stroud made the first three games look easy, completing 64.5 percent of his passes for 906 yards and four touchdowns. He didn't have the same efficiency completing 53.3 percent of his 30 passes for 306 yards and two touchdowns.

Houston was paced on the ground by Dameon Pierce, who ran for 81 yards on 24 carries. The Texans ran for 139 yards — the first time they have eclipsed the century mark since Dec. 11, 2022.