The Jacksonville Jaguars enter the 2023 season with an enticing receiver trio in Calvin Ridley, Christian Kirk and Zay Jones, who complement each other's skill sets and can put pressure on all three levels of the defense.
Kirk, who played with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, DeAndre Hopkins and A.J. Green during his four years in Arizona, said the Jags' corps has a chance to be the best he's been a part of.
"I've been a part of some special ones," Kirk said on Tuesday, via the team's official website. "I've been in the room with a couple Hall of Famers. We have the potential. I wouldn't say we're there yet, but we have the potential top to bottom, not only production-wise, but just from a professionalism and character standpoint. With the type of guys we have in our room, we definitely have everything that it takes to be special."
Kirk backed up his big payday in Jacksonville last season, leading the Jags with 84 catches for 1,108 yards and eight touchdowns -- all career bests. He generated six games of 90-plus receiving yards (seven such games in his first four years). Kirk is ready to double down on that production.
"I definitely feel like there's always something to prove," he said. "I know within myself, there's a lot that I want to prove. I may feel overlooked at times and that's just part of it. It has kind of been the story of my career. I never really lose that edge. I always walk away from a season saying that that wasn't good enough in certain areas. It's still the chip on my shoulder, trying to not only prove to myself, but to this team, to this league, that I can be one of the best in the league consistently.
"Everybody can do it one year. The thing I mainly want to prove to myself is doing it consistently year in and year out."
The Jaguars were one of three teams to boast three players with 750-plus receiving yards in 2022 -- Kirk, Jones (career-high 823), Evan Engram (career-high 766). The others: the Los Angeles Chargers (Mike Williams, Keenan Allen, Josh Palmer) and Cincinnati Bengals (Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd).
The addition of Ridley brings explosive playmaking to the Jags' offense, but another target in a crowded room. Kirk isn't fretting how Trevor Lawrence distributes the ball.
"Everybody's just bought in," Kirk said. "We're all bought into winning. We all understand that there are a lot of mouths to feed, that we have a lot of talent and there's only one ball, but nobody really cares about that. Everybody's focused on winning one week at a time and taking this thing as it progresses. It's cool to have everybody on the same page, bought into the goal and what we're trying to accomplish."
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