The Texans beefed up their receiving core by trading a 2026 7th-round draft pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars to acquire Christian Kirk. They followed up the trade by restructuring Kirk’s $15.5 million salary into a $14 million signing bonus, which lowered his salary this season to the league minimum of $1.17 million. This move creates nearly $12 million in cap space with the addition of more void years to pro-rate his signing bonus amortization.
Texans quarterback CJ Stroud appeared to regress last season from his phenomenal rookie campaign, but it can’t be understated how much his top three wide receivers’ missing a combined 19 games contributed to his struggles.
Tank Dell is expected the entirety of next season after tearing his ACL, MCL, and LCL, plus dislocating his kneecap late last season. Stefon Diggs, the Texan’s big offseason addition season last year, also had a season-ending ACL injury. The Texans acquiring Kirk could signal Diggs’ time in Houston is done.
I thought the Texans made a great move before restructuring his salary for this season. The fact that Tutu Atwell just re-signed with the Rams for 10 million makes Kirk’s kind of feel like a bargain.
The Texans’ acquisition of Christian Kirk is a great move in their hope of regaining the success the offense had two years ago. Kirk is someone you should target in your fantasy football drafts this summer.
Christian Kirk also had his season cut short last year due to an injury but still finished 12th in aDOT while averaging nearly two yards per route run. The previous three seasons, Kirk played 46 out of a possible 51 games, catching at least 57 passes each year while averaging at least 12.8 yards per reception.
Kirk is only two years removed from ranking in the top 20 among WRs in YPRR, true catch rate, and win rate versus man defense. He’s primarily lined up most of his career in the slot. Lining him up there with Nico Collins on the outside is a scary thought for opposing defenses.
Kirk can do all the things Houston acquired Stefon Diggs for last season but without demanding the ball on a regular basis. What I like most from a fantasy perspective about Kirk’s prospects is the offense the Texans will run with their new OC, Nick Caley.
Caley was the Rams’ passing game coordinator under Sean McVay. The McVay coaching tree is known for utilizing the slot receiver a lot (i.e., Kupp and Puka over the last few years). Putting Christian Kirk in the slot, with Nico Collins on the outside to draw attention from opposing secondaries, combined with Kirk’s ability to get open versus both man and zone, could lead to a huge season for the 28-year-old.
I expect the Texans’ offense to get back on track this season and for us to see a CJ Stroud who closely resembles the player from his rookie season rather than the player we saw struggle at times last season. Don’t be surprised if Kirk’s numbers this upcoming season are similar to his breakout year in 2022. That season, he caught 84 passes for 1,108 receiving yards at 13.2 yards per reception and scored eight touchdowns. (Kirk was WR18 that year)
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