5 Houston Texan players playing for their jobs this preseason

Christian Kirksey – Linebacker

Christian Kirksey has been with the Houston Texans since the 2021 season and during that time has produced only three sacks.  Despite PFF giving him a pass rush grade of 78.1, he’s lacking in the run defense department scoring a grade of 55 and a coverage grade of 52.5.

The Texans need more from their player and they need playmakers too.  If the only thing Kirksey is bringing to the table is three sacks, that’s not going to help his cause.  Again, similar to Jerry Hughes’ situation, this team has young talent that can and will get to the quarterback.

Kirksey is also getting a base salary this year of $4 million but unlike Steven Nelson, the team can release him on cut-down day and save over $5 million on the cap.  It’s very likely there will be talented players that get cut from other teams that are better and cheaper than Kirksey.