How Christian Kirk can earn his contract as the Jaguars’ main receiver

The Jacksonville Jaguars made a huge deal this off-season to acquire their version of a No. 1 receiver in Christian Kirk from the Arizona Cardinals. Signing Kirk to a four-year, $72 million deal that could be worth up to $84 million with $37 million fully guaranteed, given Kirk’s career numbers in pass-heavy offenses? That surprised a lot of people.

The argument for the deal, if there is one: Slot receivers are becoming the new ‘X’, as the Los Angeles Rams have with Cooper Kupp, Philadelphia Eagles have with DeVonta Smith, and the Chargers have with Keenan Allen. These new explosive slot receivers are now a quarterback’s security blanket. As ESPN’s Mina Kimes said on her recent podcast, that is exactly what Kirk can do for Trevor Lawrence.

Jaguars’ offensive coordinator Press Taylor recently said of Kirk: “We can line him up all over the formation. He can do a number of different things. He can win on the outside. He’s a great decision-maker with great speed, which you don’t always hear that about receivers being great decision-makers, but he really is. So, you can put him in positions to be able to adjust things and be able to get on the same page with Trevor.”

After three years with the Cardinals, Kirk is coming off his best season, finishing only 18 yards shy from his first 1,000-yard campaign.

Let’s dive into the film to see how the Jaguars can get the most out of their new deep threat — such as the deal is.

Gaining separation downfield

The Jaguars haven’t had a pure route runner since Allen Robinson, who they let walk back in 2018. Over the last few years, the Jaguars have had issues getting separation downfield from their receivers. In fact, it’s a major problem. According to Sports Info Solutions, the Jaguars ranked 25^th in completion percentage for on-target throws, and Pro Football Focus gave them a 63.7 receiving grade which was 29^th in the NFL. They just couldn’t separate.

Luckily for Kirk…