Remember the name Christian Kirk, the wide receiver from Texas A&M could be in the mix of players the Jacksonville Jaguars take a look at with the 29th pick in the NFL Draft on Thursday. For those of you who follow SEC Football, you already know about Christian Kirk – the speedster who would add yet another option to the Jaguars’ passing game.
The Jaguars wide receiving corps underwent a bit of a change this offseason. The team did not re-sign Allen Robinson, who signed with the Chicago Bears in free agency. Allen Hurns was released, then signed a deal with the Dallas Cowboys. Marqise Lee was re-signed to a new deal and free agency brought in Donte Moncrief from the Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville’s longest tenured player, tight end Marcedes Lewis, was also let go. Austin Sefarian-Jenkins was brought in to replace him.
As Jay Johnson of Jaguars Wire wrote, Kirk could be one of those players who could impact this franchise, “Despite not being the tallest receiver, could be a special playmaker. He’d especially be a fit for the Jags’ offense due to his abilities after the catch, which is something the offense needed in 2017.
“In addition to that, Kirk is the type of receiver that could especially help a sporadic signal-caller like Blake Bortles as he’d give him a short-range target who has been known to make something out of nothing throughout his career.”
If he can be a Julian Edelman type of player who also helps on special teams may be the way the Jaguars lean come Thursday night. A unit featuring Lee, Moncrief, Keelan Cole, Dede Westbrook and Christian Kirk could be one of the fastest groups in the NFL this season.
Johnson compares his football traits to Odell Beckham, Jr., a player executive vice-president Tom Coughlin drafted while the head coach of the New York Giants.
“That in mind, if he’s available, it shouldn’t shock fans if the Jags went with the 5-foot-10, 200-pound magician over a bigger target like Courtland Sutton or even a tight end as both could be addressed later in the draft,” Johnson said.