Christian Kirk "Looks Like a Safety Blanket" for Stroud, per ESPN's DJ Bien-Aime

Given that his competition consists of two rookie wide receivers from Iowa State, it’s not surprising that Christian Kirk is being labeled a potential safety blanket for Stroud by beat reporters. Kirk has largely been productive when he’s been on the field his entire career, and as a veteran presence working in a role that the Texans have a clear need at, Kirk can absolutely come out of the gate strong while Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel get up to speed. The issue for Kirk is that the Texans spent high draft capital on acquiring Higgins and Noel (2nd and 3rd round picks, respectively), and at the price of just a seventh-round pick, Houston has little invested in Kirk comparatively. Where Higgins and Noel have room to grow in the Texans offense, Kirk could be just a stopgap until one or both get up to speed – and with Higgins already showing up in camp, there’s a chance that Kirk could be relegated to the slot role sooner rather than later. The threat of Kirk becoming a depreciating asset is real, though the chance for him to produce early returns makes his WR58 price tag palatable. After all, it would only take an injury to one of Houston’s three other receivers for Kirk to be locked into a fantasy-relevant role – though the odds that Kirk finds himself working down the depth chart as opposed to remaining atop it are long if Higgins and Noel pan out how the Texans would like to see them do so.