The Andre Johnson trade rumors involving the Houston Texans may be on the way out, as the wide receiver could be close to coming back into the fold heading into training camp and that could mean teams like the Oakland Raiders, Philadelphia Eagles, Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots will not be pulling off the trade, as those were identified as potential destinations.
According to ESPN.com, Johnson has remained away from the Texans this entire offseason and in minicamp workouts, as he has been frustrated with the direction of the team. ESPN writes that the situation may have changed recently, as Johnson was spotted at the Texans' facility to start learning the new offense of head coach Bill O'Brien ahead of training camp opening. While that is not a guarantee that Johnson will show up, it appears to be a major development for him, as the WR has been away from all team related activities this offseason.
Johnson did not demand a trade during the offseason and he did not make a stink about having a new contract, but it appeared he simply was frustrated after a 2-14 season and getting a new head coach. O'Brien is known as a tough coach and that could be one reason why Johnson was upset, but it looks like he is putting that behind him. NFL.com reported earlier in the year that four teams were interested in Johnson, but no names were given out.
The Raiders and Browns were considered options because they have the cap space and the draft picks to make a deal, while the Patriots and Eagles were mentioned as teams in need. The Raiders want more behind Denarius Moore and the team also has Johnson's old QB in Matt Schaub, but no deal ever came close to happening. The Browns looked more likely after the Josh Gordon situation, but the team brought in Miles Austin and they are expecting some younger guys to step up.
Grantland.com identified the Eagles as a potential option since they lost DeSean Jackson, but Chip Kelly appears ready to go with Riley Cooper and Jeremy Maclin. The Texans had no interest in trading Johnson and they held the leverage, as there would be over $10 million of dead money on the salary cap and that made Houston think they would want to keep him rather than trade him and still have to pay.
Johnson has basically every record in the Texans book and he now could be back in action as soon as this weekend. Last season Johnson had over 100 catches for 1,400 yards despite playing with a bad Schaub and an undrafted rookie in Case Keenum and now he will have Ryan Fitzpatrick throwing balls to him if he reports. The Texans went just 2-14 last season and lost 14 straight games after opening with two wins and that likely built the frustration for Johnson as well. The Texans feel they will be better than that record and it comes after they drafted Jadeveon Clowney and made a number of signings this offseason.
