Zaven Collins Fantasy Overview

Cardinals LB Zaven Collins (shoulder) and DE J.J. Watt (calf) are questionable for Sunday's game against the Panthers. Collins managed limited practices all week. Watt sat out Wednesday and Thursday before returning to a limited Friday workout. We'll check the status of both players Sunday.

Cardinals LB Zaven Collins left Sunday's game against the Rams with a shoulder injury. We'll see about the severity. Collins has spent the past 2 games wearing the green dot on his helmet, meaning he calls the defensive plays.

The Cardinals let LB Jordan Hicks walk in free agency this offseason, clearing the way for LB Zaven Collins to enter the starting lineup in Year 2. He has been working there so far in training camp. According to Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic, Collins and Nick Vigil have been the starting ILBs in the base defense. Collins has called plays in the huddle at times (green dot) but is also coming off the field in nickel and dime packages. "He's got to be able to diagnose it, see it and go, and not wait on the play to come to him," HC Kliff Kingsbury says. "I think last year he was kind of waiting for everything to unwind. I think he's still learning, but there's no doubt he's reacting faster than last year at this time." There's still time for Collins to earn more of a 3-down role, but we've moved him down our 2022 IDP rankings. The role uncertainty makes him a boom/bust fantasy option. Isaiah Simmons, meanwhile, has shifted to the "star" LB role, which will move him around the formation. Somers writes that he "seems to have a role in every package."