The Andre Johnson trade rumors will start picking up again for the Houston Texans as training camps open up and teams like the Oakland Raiders, Cleveland Browns, Philadelphia Eagles or New England Patriots could be interested in a deal, as NFL.com reports four teams have been targeting the WR and this could come before the season or ahead of the trade deadline in 2014.
According to ESPN.com, Johnson has been upset with the Houston Texans and the way they have been moving along since going 2-14 last season and while he is not demanding a trade, he has stayed away from the team all offseason. The report says that Johnson has thought about his future with the franchise and that he is unsure if he wants to play there anymore, as he does not want to be in a rebuilding situation again in his early 30s as his career starts getting down towards the end. Johnson mentioned new head coach Bill O'Brien as well as the two playoff appearances in his career as reasons why he has stayed away.
Like Johnson, most players with disputes stay away from team activities and minicamps during the offseason, but once training camp rolls around, the player usually shows up. Johnson has made it clear he is not planning on doing that and while that could change soon, so far he has shown no indication of wanting to show up and play. Some reports say that Johnson could consider sitting out for the season or retirement rather than playing this year, but that seems a bit extreme for a player that put up Pro Bowl numbers last season.
Johnson is a fit for a number of teams, but the Texans right now are not motivated to trade him, as they will have dead money on the cap even with a deal. The team loves Johnson and he is their all-time leading WR and with Ryan Fitzpatrick coming in, they need every target they can get. The team lost 14 straight games last season and Johnson complained a bit at times and now he could be poised to move. The Texans are hoping that he shows up and all this is for naught, but right now it is not looking that way.
Last season Johnson had over 100 catches for 1,400 yards and he could be in line for another good season even with Fitzpatrick at quarterback. Johnson is 32 and the Raiders and Browns have been mentioned as options since they have the cap space, but they are not winning situations either. The Patriots don't like to make deals like this even if it would upgrade over Danny Amendola, while the Eagles could be an option after they cut DeSean Jackson.
The Texans have some major decisions coming up and while a trade for Johnson is unlikely, it could get real once he does or doesn't show up to camp. The Texans picked Tom Savage as their QB to develop in the future and they have DeAndre Hopkins coming in for year two and there also is obviously a ton of hype around Jadeveon Clowney.
