The Houston Texans were one of the NFL's more active teams when free agency tampering began on Monday. Day 1 saw the Texans address both sides of the ball, signing wideouts Braxton Berrios and Justin Watson while also adding defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins and cornerback Tremon Smith.
The Texans even got in on some trade action, moving left tackle Larry Tunsil to the Washington Commanders in a deal that involved five draft picks. As it turns out, that wasn't the only trade that general manager Nick Caserio had in the cards.
Texans Trade Kenyon Green to Eagles for CJ Gardner-Johnson
On Tuesday morning, NFL insiders Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo reported that the Texans are trading offensive guard Kenyon Green and a 2026 fifth-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and a 2026 sixth-rounder.
Trading away Green and Tunsil — two starting offensive linemen — on back-to-back days is drastic, but it's also necessary after the O-line's 2024 performance. The Texans struggled with blocking last season, finishing the year with the 12th-worst pass block grade (65.3) and eighth-worst run block mark (57.3) on Pro Football Focus.
Nevertheless, Green being traded away three years after the Texans drafted him 15th overall is GM Casero's way of admitting he made a mistake. The former Texas A&M blocker's NFL career hasn't come close to living up to the hype, as injuries have limited him to 27 regular-season appearances since 2022 — only 52.9% of games during that stretch.
Although some Texans fans wanted to give Green a bounce-back opportunity, management had other plans after a disastrous performance last season. The 23-year-old blocker finished with the fifth-worst offense (38.6) and run blocking (44.6) grades on PFF, making it abundantly clear that it was time to move on.
Now, Green is the Eagles' issue while Gardner-Johnson joins the Texans' secondary.
After missing most of 2023 with a serious leg injury, the veteran defensive back bounced back impressively with 35 solo tackles, 12 defended passes, six interceptions, and a forced fumble in 16 games with Philadelphia. Gardner-Johnson then had a strong playoff performance that culminated with his first Super Bowl ring, giving him experience that the Texans covet.
With Tunsil and Green gone, the Texans will likely turn to the NFL draft to address their offensive line. The good news is that GM Caserio will have at least four top-90 picks come April, giving him enough opportunities to shore up the O-line.
As for how the early offseason moves are paying off, the Texans are currently tied for the 12th-best Super Bowl 60 odds (+3400) on FanDuel Sportsbook. With a few more additions, those odds could improve even more.
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