C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Houston Texans
Getty
C.J. Gardner-Johnson #8 of the Philadelphia Eagles speaks with reporters during Super Bowl week.
The Houston Texans can breathe a bit easier ahead of their Week 1 showdown against the Los Angeles Rams. Head coach DeMeco Ryans met with the media on Monday, and he provided a critical update on injured safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, a Texans offseason trade acquisition.
Gardner-Johnson went down during training camp with what The Houston Chronicle’s Jonathan M. Alexander called a “scary knee injury.”
His return is incredibly good news for the Texans.
C.J. Gardner-Johnson to Start for Texans vs Rams
C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Houston Texans
GettyC.J. Gardner-Johnson #8 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on before the game against the Dallas Cowboys.
“C.J is doing really well, progressing fine,” Ryans told reporters on September 1, less than one week shy of the one-month anniversary of Gardner-Johnson’s exit from practice. “We expect him to be ready for Week 1.”
Gardner-Johnson, 27, won a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles last season and joins a stacked Texans secondary.
Gardner-Johnson is also changing his number, along with several of his Texans teammates.
Gardner-Johnson wore the No. 8 with the Eagles in 2024, something he has made note of since joining the Texans.
Texans Avoided Worst With C.J. Gardner-Johnson
C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Houston Texans
GettyC.J. Gardner-Johnson #8 of the Philadelphia Eagles reacts while playing the Washington Commanders during the NFC Championship Game.
Gardner-Johnson is a playmaker, leading the league with 6 interceptions in 2022 and then tying that mark last season. Losing Gardner-Johnson would have been detrimental to a Texans secondary that boasts tremendous depth.
None of that depth could replace what Gardner-Johnson is expected to bring to the Texans this season.
“It was a somber moment at The Greenbrier Sports Performance Center as teammates took a knee around Gardner-Johnson. The field went silent. Gardner-Johnson was unable to put weight on his leg. He was visibly upset, pounding the ground with his hand after he went down,” KPR2’s Aaron Wilson wrote on August 7.
“Gardner-Johnson will undergo a magnetic resonance imaging exam.”
Despite the dour early mood, the Texans quickly ruled out the worst for Gardner-Johnson, lending hope to the idea of a Week 1 return.
“Tests revealed that Texans safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson’s ACL is intact,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on X on August 7. “The Texans still are conducting more testing to determine the extent of the injury but the team is not concerned about his ACL.”
That was the initial sigh of relief for the Texans on Gardner-Johnson.
C.J. Gardner-Johnson Looking to Prove Doubters Wrong
C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Houston Texans
GettyC.J. Gardner-Johnson #8 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates after breaking up a pass against the Kansas City Chiefs during Super Bowl LIX.
The Texans are getting a motivated Gardner-Johnson, who took issue with the Eagles’ decision to trade him and is eager to show what they lost with that decision.
His motivation is more good news for the Texans.
“People say, ‘He’s a hazard, he’s this, he’s that.’ I never been no hazard, bro. They got no real issues on me. That black ball ain’t going to work on me, because I got me a ring,” Gardner-Johnson told Wilson in comments published on June 7. “I got me one. I got three more championships in me. I’m probably going to win the next three. I’m going to get me another Super Bowl this year. Just watch.”
Rams head coach Sean McVay knows the kind of impact Gardner-Johnson can make.
The Texans have questions at running back, with Joe Mixon on the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list. The Texans have Nick Chubb, though, and a defense featuring a ferocious pass rush and a talented secondary, of which Gardner-Johnson is a member.
A quick return was key for Gardner-Johnson, too, with a $9.4 million option bonus looming in 2026 that could see the Texans make a tough decision on his three-year, $27 million contract.