In the midst of the Houston Texans interesting offseason so far, their collection of moves have been met with a combination of cheers and jeers as a result of their compelling decisions made on both sides of the ball.
One of the Texans' biggest moves of the offseason to this point has been their acquisition of former Philadelphia Eagles safety and Super Bowl champion C.J. Gardner-Johnson. He's a big-time playmaker to land in the secondary who can help bolster this Houston defense to a higher level than seen last season, effectively paying major dividends for the 2025 campaign.
It's been a move well-received by those involved in league circles as well. An anonymous executive interviewed by The Athletic insider Mike Sando dealt considerable applause to the Texans' addition of Gardner-Johnson.
“I like the Chauncey Gardner-Johnson [trade],” the anonymous exec said. “They are built to stop the pass. Let those rushers eat up front and have playmakers on the back end. I respect that they have a very clearly defined team-building philosophy, especially on defense with their defensive head coach.”
All in exchange for the former first-round guard Kenyon Green and a draft pick swap, the Texans secured his services for this year and next. Of course, that could lead to this offensive line's ceiling taking a hit, but Gardner-Johnson is an experienced and talented force in the back-end that can emphasize this defense's existing strengths and take this group to another level.
Gardner-Johnson comes off another strong season of production with the Eagles, where he posted 59 combined tackles, 12 passes defended, and six interceptions within his 16 games suiting up. At only 27 years old, the safety can still remain at his peak level with the Texans for the next few years upon his acquisition, and should mean major things for Houston's secondary.
It remains to be seen how much Gardner-Johnson can truly elevate this group, but when asking around the league, it seems clear the Texans came out of this deal on top.
