Wide receiver Christian Kirk has found a new home, but he’s staying in the neighborhood.
One day after announcing plans to release the 28-year-old receiver, the Jaguars are trading Kirk within the division. Their trade partner, the Texans, are also in the AFC South and will send Jacksonville a 2026 seventh-round NFL draft pick for the receiver, according to multiple reports.
Kirk was set to enter the final year of a four-year, $72 million contract that he signed ahead of the 2022 season. According to NFL Network, Houston will take on Kirk’s 2025 salary of $16.5 million as part of the trade.
The Texans’ trade for Kirk marks the second year in a row that the team brought in more pass-catching talent via trade. Last year, Houston traded for former Bills wideout Stefon Diggs to play in a receiving corps that already featured Nico Collins and Tank Dell.
With Diggs set to hit free agency and Dell coming off of a bad knee injury that ended his 2024 season prematurely, the Texans have started their offseason by acquiring another receiver to fill a need at the position.
After setting career-high marks in catches (84), yards (1,108) and touchdowns (8) in the first year of his contract, Kirk played in 20 games over his last two seasons in Jacksonville. The former second-round pick ended his Jaguars tenure with back-to-back years featuring a season-ending ailment: a core injury in 2023 and a broken collarbone last year.
In 2024, Kirk caught 27 passes for 379 yards and one touchdown in eight games.
He now becomes the latest addition to a Houston passing offense led by quarterback C.J. Stroud.
Christian Kirk trade details
According to reports, these are the full terms of the trade:
- Texans receive: WR Christian Kirk
- Jaguars receive: 2026 seventh-round pick (from Rams via Houston)
The Texans will trade Jacksonville the Rams’ 2026 seventh-rounder that they originally received as part of their 2024 trade to acquire receiver Ben Skowronek.
The deal gives Stroud another pass-catching option to work with and settles some uncertainty in the Texans’ wide receiver corps. Diggs is a pending free agent this offseason, and Dell could miss much – if not all – of the 2025 season after a serious knee injury he suffered late last year.
Jacksonville receives compensation for a receiver they had planned to release at the start of the new league year next week.
Christian Kirk contract
Kirk is entering the final year of the four-year, $72 million contract he signed as a free agent in 2022. The Texans will pay him the $16.5 million he’s owed this year, according to NFL Network.