When the Texans made the move to acquire an anchor in the secondary earlier in the offseason, there were some questions around the long-term impact of the move. The organization moved on from one of its former first-round picks, guard Kenyon Green, but got one of the league's premier safeties in return.
While he hasn't taken a snap in Houston yet, that hasn't stopped the predictions from rolling in about new defensive cornerstone C.J. Gardner-Johnson. Recently, Moe Moton from Bleacher Report listed the Space City safety as the Texan who is most important for the organization to lock up for the long haul.
"Typically, teams should wait for a new acquisition to take a snap before signing him to a new deal, but Gardner-Johnson is past the prove-it stage of his career," Moton said of the new Houston defensive back in his article. "He logged six interceptions in two of the last three seasons, recorded 12 pass breakups last year and plays multiple positions at a high level. The Texans know what they acquired when they traded for him. He's an underpaid addition with only $2 million guaranteed on his contract for the year."
The full trade between the Philadelphia Eagles and Houston Texans back in early March included Gardner-Johnson and a 2026 sixth-round pick going to Houston while the Eagles got the aforementioned Kenyon Green and a 2025 fifth-round pick that turned into linebacker Smael Mondon Jr.
As Moton mentioned in his explanation for choosing Gardner-Johnson, the seventh-year defensive back has entered a stage in his career where he is veteran who has proved his worth and brings more than on-field skill to the organization.
Across 74 games in his career, he has 18 interceptions, 51 pass deflections and 2 forced fumbles. His 2024 campaign was one of his best, with him tying his career high in interceptions with 6 and running one back 69 yards for his first career pick six in Week 17 against the Dallas Cowboys.
Gardner-Johnson's impact extends beyond the field. The veteran has an off-field presence that is one of the biggest in the league and he will be a vocal lead in a deep defensive backs group this year in Houston.
"He [Gardner-Johnson] gonna bring a whole nother, like, just.. like Kamari [Lassiter], like craziness," Texans cornerback and defensive captain Derek Stingley Jr. told the media after the trade news broke. "I think he'll gel well with the rest of us and we're just gonna go out there and have fun."
Now, it's a waiting game to see if Houston decides to lock up its new playmaker long term. Any deal would likely come before Texans training camp kicks off on July 22.
