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Charlie Campbell, Senior Draft Analyst
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2021 NFL MOCK DRAFT - WALT'S | CHARLIE'S ROUND: 1

Mixed Grades for Christian Kirk

Updated Oct. 19, 2017
By Charlie Campbell. Follow Charlie on Twitter @draftcampbell.

Entering the 2017 college football season, one of the wide receivers who had the most buzz about him was Texas A&M's Christian Kirk. Since his freshman season, Kirk has jumped out to NFL evaluators in games and in practice. He caught 80 passes for 1,009 yards with seven touchdowns in his first season, plus impressed as a punt returner. That year, some scouting sources said there nickname for Kirk became "Baby Beckham" in reference to Odell Beckham Jr. The same team sources, however, say they've been disappointed in Kirk this year and that their round grade for him is lower than the first-round grade that Beckham received. WalterFootball.com reached out to sources across the league to see where they had Kirk and came back with results that were very mixed.

A director of college scouting for a AFC playoff team said they were giving Kirk a late second-/early third-round grade. They liked him as a slot receiver, but didn't see him as a first-rounder. Another NFC scout said he had a "2/3" estimate on Kirk as well. They said that Kirk is similar to Dolphins wide receiver Jarvis Landry, except Kirk is a little smaller but faster than Landry. A general manager of a NFC playoff team that grades players very hard has Kirk as a third-rounder. One AFC director of college scouting said they had a late first-round grade on Kirk.

Kirk has 29 catches for 360 yards and five touchdowns this season. His production has been limited by a lot of double coverage and the struggles of freshman quarterback Kelly Mond. If Kirk catches fire in his potential final six games - regular season and bowl game - that would definitely help his draft stock. Sources say that Kirk is planning on entering the 2018 NFL Draft even though there is big discrepancy in his draft grades. During the leadup to the 2018 NFL Draft, Kirk has potential to be a significant riser or slider considering the large differences in the grades he is getting from teams across the league.

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