Fantasy Fallout of Christian Kirk Being Traded to Houston

A day after announcing they planned to release him, the Jacksonville Jaguars reversed course Thursday, reportedly agreeing to trade veteran WR Christian Kirk to the Houston Texans for a 2026 seventh-round pick.

Kirk, who joined the Jaguars before 2022 on a much-discussed four-year, $72 million deal, put up 84 catches for 1,108 yards and 8 touchdowns in his first season as a Jaguar, but injuries held him in check in 2023 and 2024, with the receiver combining for 84 receptions for 1,166 yards and 4 touchdowns across 20 games over those two years, missing five games in 2023 and nine in 2024.

The 28-year-old Kirk was set to be released by the Jaguars as he entered the final year of his deal, but the Jaguars opted to get something in return instead. A seventh-round pick a year down the road is just about the minimum possible return, but that (and the opportunity to clear the salary off the books) is at least something.

In Houston, Kirk should immediately become the WR2 behind Nico Collins, with Stefon Diggs recovering from a torn ACL and entering free agency and Tank Dell set to miss the year after his dramatic injury. That’s a potentially productive role for Kirk, with not a lot behind Collins and him in what has been a productive offense in recent seasons. Given his increasing injury issues (Kirk has played seven years and missed multiple games in five of them), Kirk can’t be counted on as a fantasy starter in 2026, but he does offer nice weekly upside with a chance at climbing into must-start status if he starts out strong.

The Texans almost certainly aren’t done at the position for the offseason, with John Metchie III and Xavier Hutchinson the highest-profile returning receivers, and they combined for 371 yards and 1 touchdown in 2024. So another big-name addition would push Kirk down the pecking order, but for now, this is a good landing spot for Kirk.

Back in Jacksonville, it was already widely assumed Kirk would be gone for 2025. His departure leaves Brian Thomas Jr. comfortably atop the depth chart. But the biggest beneficiary of Kirk’s departure is at the tight end, where Evan Engram and Brenton Strange both could see a jump in usage in 2025. Over the last two years, per the FTN Fantasy Splits Tool, Engram has averaged 4.2 more PPR points per game in games Kirk has missed or played only one snap before leaving.

There are rumors Engram could be a casualty in Jacksonville this offseason like Kirk, in which case some of this benefit would spill over to Strange. Either way, the tight ends are the biggest wins of Kirk’s departure in Jacksonville.