Andre Johnson and the Houston Texans are at a standoff. The wide receiver is not thrilled with the direction of the team and would prefer to be moved now instead of later. The Texans have no plans on sending away their franchise-leading receiver, but so far a resolution has not been found. Johnson told reporters that he is simply tired of dealing with the inconsistencies of the team and is unsure of his future while head coach Bill O' Brien has been tasked with smoothing things over.
"When you've been somewhere for a long time, nobody's been here as long as I have," Johnson said, via ESPN.com. "I've been thinking about things this offseason. Kind of wonder if this is still the place for me."
This sent off red flags all around the Houston organization. Likely putting their trust in a rookie quarterback for the 2014 season, Johnson will be needed to help stabilize the offense. He currently leads the franchise in receiving years, touchdowns and catches and is expected to continue his elite numbers next season. O'Brien has heard of Johnson's unhappiness and the two met , giving the head coach some hope things will calm down.
"I think I'll let Andre speak for himself," O'Brien said. "I have a tremendous amount of respect for Andre and his career here in Houston. The conversations that Andre and I have had have been very positive about what we're doing here as a team and, obviously offensively, what we're doing here. As far as what Andre said, I'll let him speak for himself. I can only tell you from my end we've had good, positive communication."
Financially, Johnson is not tradable this year. The Texans would actually eat money if they sent the receiver away. However, next year he is a better grab. However, Johnson is not interested in being apart of a rebuilding process. The receiver would prefer to be moved now no matter what the Texans' plans are.
"Now I'm on my third head coach, that's something I give thought to," Johnson said. "I just look over my career -- is it a place? I've only been to the playoffs twice. I think we've only had three winning seasons, two 8-8 seasons. I don't think any player wants to experience that."
After making several wide receiver moves last week, the Cleveland Browns are no longer interested. The Oakland Raiders and New England Patriots could both afford Johnson this season with their salary cap space, but it is uncertain what the Texans would want in return for their star. The Philadelphia Eagles also have space for Johnson, but that seems like a long shot at best.
