Oct 6, 2024; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Christian Kirk (13) warms up before a game against the Indianapolis Colts at EverBank Stadium.

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Jaguars Find Trade Partner For WR Christian Kirk Days Before Releasing Him

Christian Kirk heading to Houston, Jaguars get draft compensation

Oct 6, 2024; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Christian Kirk (13) warms up before a game against the Indianapolis Colts at EverBank Stadium.

The Jacksonville Jaguars seem to be headed for an overhaul at least on the offensive side of the ball. They recently cut tight end Evan Engram, and are now following it up with the trade of wide receiver Christian Kirk. Had it not been for the Houston Texans who jumped in for the trade, Jacksonville was going to cut the former Arizona Cardinal once free agency started.

As per reports going around, the Texans are finalizing the deal and are sending a seventh-round pick from 2026 the other way in exchange for Kirk. This deal may turn out to be a win-win for both teams given that the Jaguars were eventually going to cut him for nothing but have received an extra selection for next year, albeit a seventh-rounder. As for the Texans, this should be a quality signing with the hope that Kirk can remain healthier than he has been recently.

A deal before a release: Jaguars are trading WR Christian Kirk to the Texans for a 2026 seventh-round pick that originally belonged to the Rams, as @DMRussini reported.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 6, 2025

Kirk’s Career Thus Far

The 28-year-old wideout started his professional career with the Arizona Cardinals who drafted him in the second round of the 2018 NFL draft. Kirk made it to the PFWA All-Rookie Team and remained consistent throughout his four-year tenure in Arizona.

He then signed a 4-year, $72 million deal with the Jaguars and had his breakthrough year in 2022 with over 1,000 receiving yards that season. Unfortunately though, the Arizona native has missed much of the past two seasons, first due to a core muscle injury in 2023 and then a season-ending broken collarbone in week 8 of the 2024 season.

Also Read: Seattle Seahawks part ways with long-term receiver Tyler Lockett

Entering the final year of his current contract with Jacksonville, Kirk is set to earn $15.5 million which will now be paid by the Texans. Moreover, he had the biggest cap hit on the Jaguars roster with $24.4 million against the cap in 2025.

What Does Kirk Bring To The Texans

The main worry for the Texans with this trade should be whether or not Kirk will be able to remain healthy. Last year, Houston had quality in their wide receiver room with Nico Collins, Stefon Diggs, and Tank Dell all playing great football. Unfortunately, the Texans found themselves playing only with Collins in their postseason loss to the Kansas City Chiefs as both Dell and Diggs were out injured.

Diggs is set to become a free agent having signed a one-year deal last season. As for Dell, he suffered a gruesome knee injury including a dislocated knee, several torn ligaments, and meniscus damage very late in the year which means he may miss several games early in the season.

The addition of Kirk to the roster was a much needed one for Houston. It may not be the biggest signing, but it is a need of the hour deal and if Kirk can remain injury free, he should be a good addition to the Texans’ roster.

Read More: 2025 NFL Free Agency Start Date

Christian Kirk

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

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Devavrat Kulkarni

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I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!