Twitter was raving about Houston’s wide receiver Jontre Kirklin after his performance on Sunday. The Houston Roughnecks went against the San Antonia Brahmas, securing another XFL victory for Houston (22-13). Kirklin is responsible for a large part of that success, as he made some seriously good catches.
This is the catch (and Tweet) that made me want to dig deeper into who Jontre Kirklin is and if he really is the most “NFL-ready player” in the XFL:
Kirklin came to the Roughnecks from LSU. Prior to the XFL, the internet has praised him mostly for his versatility and performance at LSU Pro Day. However, I wanted to reflect on his current XFL career to determine if this claim is justifiable.
Jontre Kirklin’s XFL 2023 Highlights
Week 3:
Week 2:
Week 1:
via ESPN
Jontre Kirklin Stats (Weeks 1 and 2)
via XFL
|
GP 2 |
REC 13 |
YDS
204 |
TGT
21 |
YDS/REC
15.7 |
TD
3 |
20+
4 |
40+
1 |
LNG
40 |
1ST
10 |
1ST%
47.6% |
FUM
0 |
Verdict: Jontre Kirklin v. People Who Don’t Agree with Matthew John B
I think based on the information we have on hand (it’s only Week 3), I would say that Kirklin is one of the most NFL-ready players in the XFL. That is the short answer.
The Long Answer
Kirklin may become even more of a favorite after Sunday night. After all, there are some people who didn’t even have Kirklin on the top list of the Houston Roughnecks in general prior to the start of the season. This is shocking, considering he has proved himself in just three short weeks. Week 3 just confirmed our earlier suspicions that he was going to be a beast.
I can comfortably argue that Jontre Kirklin is one of the best wide receivers in the league. Though I need to see more before I can confidently agree that he is the best. I can’t just shake off Seattle’s wide receivers Jahcour Pearson or Josh Gordon. I’m not saying they’re better, just comparable. Although, if Kirklin puts on a show next week like he did on Sunday, I will agree with Matthew John B, for what it’s worth.
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