For Texans veteran wide receiver Christian Kirk, his first game against his old team didn’t turn out the way he had hoped.
The Texans absorbed a 17-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who traded Kirk within the AFC South division this offseason in exchange for a seventh-round draft pick.
The Texans’ offense had another inconsistent performance as penalties, two interceptions from quarterback C.J. Stroud, a key lost fumble by Pro Bowl wide receiver Nico Collins and pass protection breakdowns ultimately were too much to overcome.
Kirk, in his regular-season debut with the Texans after missing the first two games with a hamstring injury, knocked off rust accumulated during his convalescence. He caught three passes for 25 yards on eight targets. Kirk was open for a potential game-tying touchdown late in the game, but Jaguars pass rusher Josh Hines-Allen beat rookie left tackle Aireontae Ersery on a speed rush and batted away Stroud’s throw for a game-sealing interception by Antonio Johnson.
Kirk saw some of the timing he and Stroud worked for months to build coming back to them in the second half.
“I think it was hard in the first half with some of the inefficiencies that we were having,” Kirk said. “But, in the second half, I thought the pass game got going, and we were able to settle in a little bit. I think was good for me to get out there and get all the first game rust and get my lungs back, get my legs back, and thought at the end we had a chance.
“We just unfortunately didn’t make the plays that we needed to make to win the game. I think we eliminated the penalties on first and second down, not getting behind the chains. We ran the ball, and that helps set up some of our quick drop-back, quick play-action stuff and obviously, the big play with Nico down the sideline. Just being patient. Defense gave us opportunities all day. So, that’s more of what we want to see, especially heading into next week.”
Of course, an overhauled offense remains in the crosshairs of major scrutiny.
So far, offensive coordinator Nick Caley, Stroud, running back Nick Chubb, tight end Dalton Schultz and a completely different offensive line haven’t achieved the results they set their ambitions on.
The Texans have struggled mightily to build anything close to resembling a vibrant offense. They’re the lowest-scoring offense in the league, averaging 12.7 points per game. They’re the only team in the NFL to fail to score a single red-zone touchdown, going 0 for 4 in that category.
They’re 29th in total offense. Stroud has passed for 599 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, completing 64 percent of his throws for a 76.9 passer rating. There has been a clear regression for the offense after hiring Caley, a rookie play-caller who was supposed to spark a stagnant attack after the firing of offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik. Instead of improving, though, the offense is tangibly much worse. Stroud has been sacked eight times in three games, too.
The Jaguars’ defense, led by Hines-Allen’s relentless pressure, got the final word against the Texans.
“I gotta give credit to those guys,” Kirk said of his former teammates. “They played well, they made the plays in the moments that they needed to make them. And that was something that we didn’t do. It’s hard to win in this league when you’re starting second-and-15, second-and-20.
“You get behind the chains, especially against a good defense, it hard to get on track as an offense. And the turnovers, when you lose the turnover battle, that percentage of winning goes down as well. These are all things that reflect on us, and we just got to go back and look ourselves in the mirror, look at the film, and just correct it, but they’re all fixable things.”
Kirk is right. The Texans are making things much harder on themselves than things need to be. They are last in third-down percentage in the NFL, converting just 8 for 33 for a paltry 24.2 percent success rate.
The Texans have vowed to stick together and not point fingers. Kirk expressed confidence in the intangibles in the Texans’ locker room. The Texans host the 0-3 Tennessee Titans on Sunday at NRG Stadium.
“Yeah, his team has some of the best leaders that I’ve been around and so I’m not worried at all with where guys are going to go from here,” Kirk said. “We still have a lot of opportunities in front of us and I know that we’re just going to focus on the next one.
“We’ve got our division opponent again coming into our house and we have to respond. Nobody cares that we are 0-3. We got to show up and play on Sunday and I know this team will respond accordingly.“
With the Jaguars, Kirk suffered a broken collarbone last season and was placed on injured reserve. A hamstring injury sustained in practice at the end of the preseason derailed his hope of starting the season healthy and active. Now, Kirk is back.
“Yeah, I feel great,” Kirk said. “Obviously, the injury was unfortunate. But it’s a part of football, so it’s all about how you respond and just work your way back.
“I put in a lot of time to get myself ready to play. So just looking forward to getting back out there this week, getting integrated back into practice.”
Before the leg injury, Kirk and Stroud had spent months building timing and chemistry. Kirk said regaining that flow is like “riding a bike.”
“I think definitely C-Kirk will help those guys as he’s in the room,” Stroud said of the mentoring Kirk provides to rookies Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel. “Them getting to see him and how he works and the type of route distribution he has. Not to say they’re not doing their job. But just that veteran feeling that he’ll bring to the room.”
Kirk has outstanding ability to run after the catch, which can create big plays.
Kirk was brought into provide a reliable receiving presence in tandem with Collins. His $15.5 million base salary was restructured into a $14 million signing bonus for salary cap purposes to create $12 million in savings with the addition of void years for signing bonus amortization.
Kirk was limited to 25 catches for 320 yards and a touchdown last season in eight games for the Jaguars. The former Arizona Cardinals second-round draft pick from Texas A&M has caught 404 career passes for 5,176 yards and 29 touchdowns.
Kirk was originally scheduled to be released. Instead, the former Texas A&M Aggies standout stayed in the AFC South division with a trade to join the defending division champions.
Kirk caught a career-high 85 passes for 1,108 yards and eight touchdowns in 2022, his first season in Jacksonville, dipping to 57 catches for 857 yards and three touchdowns the following season.
With the Cardinals, his most productive season was in 2021 when he broke out with 77 catches for 982 yards and five touchdowns.
“I thought we did a great job throughout training camp, made a bunch of plays, a bunches of explosives,” Kirk said of his rapport with Stroud. “We think the same, see you know offensively and defensive schematics wise the same way, so just just definitely looking forward to to get out there and really get that role in and just keep building it throughout the season.
“I’ve been in the league for a long time been doing it I had a high level for a long time, Especially when the lights are bright and you get in between the lines, second nature to him.”
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com