Jacksonville Jaguars predicted to move on from $72 million player

A 4-13 season with Doug Pederson as the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars wasn’t enough to keep his job. Now, as part of the greater fallout due to the team’s failures, another key figure could be getting kicked out of Duval.

Jacksonville Jaguars could cut Christian Kirk this offseason

Back in March 2022, the Jacksonville Jaguars signed wide receiver Christian Kirk away from the Arizona Cardinals by offering a four-year, $72 million contract.

Kirk, 28, was the team’s leading receiver in his first season with the Jaguars, recording 84 receptions for 1,108 yards and eight touchdowns. Yet, he’s missed 14 games over the past two seasons while generating a total of 84 receptions for 1,166 receiving yards and four touchdowns.

Now entering the final year of his contract, ESPN’s Dan Graziano believes Kirk is a prime cut candidate this offseason. When asked what the odds of the Jaguars releasing Kirk from the roster were, Graziano replied, “Pretty high.”

“I’ll put it at 75%. Kirk has one year left on his contract and is scheduled to make $16.5 million in 2025, which is perfectly reasonable if he plays. (Remember how wild Kirk’s $84 million deal seemed three years ago when he signed it?) But the receiver is also coming off a season-ending collarbone injury. The Jaguars have a new coach and offensive system, and they will have a new GM soon.

Tight end Evan Engram has been a productive pass catcher for the Jags and is due for a new deal. I doubt Jacksonville cuts both Kirk and Engram, but who knows? Again, there is a lot of “new” in this situation.

One other thing to watch: The Kirk contract is reasonable enough that the Jaguars might be able to get something for him in a trade if he’s healthy.”
ESPN on Jacksonville Jaguars/Christian Kirk

As noted, Kirk can still be a productive receiver, but his health has been the biggest question mark across the past two seasons. While he won’t be anyone’s No. 1 option, he could settle in as a solid WR2 or even WR3 in the right situation.