After Christian Kirk signed a four-year deal with the Jaguars in the 2022 offseason, it initially looked like he might be a bargain.
The wideout caught 84 passes for 1,108 yards with eight touchdowns in his first campaign with Jacksonville, helping the club reach the postseason.
But Kirk’s last two years have been marred by injury. He appeared in 12 games in 2023, catching 57 passes for 787 yards with three touchdowns. Then he was only on the field for eight games in 2024, missing much of the season with a broken collarbone.
Now Kirk is with another AFC South team, as the Jags traded him to the Texans in March. Kirk said this week that he’s feeling healthy and ready to contribute.
“That has been the unfortunate part about the past two years, there are injuries that are the unfortunate fate of football and out of my control,” Kirk said, via transcript from the team. “But right now, I feel great. Being here, I have gotten stronger and faster since I have gotten here. I just feel really good and feel healthy. I am just looking forward to building through that throughout the offseason.”
A second-round pick in 2018, Kirk has been around the block enough to know a thing or two and said he’s willing to pass along what he’s learned to his new teammates.
“This is Year 8 for me, so I have been acquiring a lot of knowledge and have been around a lot of really good receivers in the NFL. Really good is selling them short, Hall of Famers,” Kirk said, having spent his first few seasons playing alongside the likes of Larry Fitzgerald and DeAndre Hopkins. “Just passing down that knowledge to the young guys and helping as much as I can. Within the offense, just making the plays that come my way, help any way I can to help make this offense more explosive \[than\] it already is.
“So far, it has been good. I am just taking it day by day and cementing that role.”
In 93 career games, Kirk has 404 receptions for 5,176 yards with 29 touchdowns.