The Houston Texans have granted wide receiver Andre Johnson permission to seek a trade. If a willing trade partner cannot be found, the team will release Johnson. The relationship between the two sides has been contentious for some time now and after Johnson balked at a reduced role next season a split was inevitable. The Texans will save a significant chunk of money as Johnson was due to earn a $10.5 million base salary and count $16.1 million against the salary cap in 2015.
It is a virtual lock that interested teams will not want to yield a draft pick for Johnson and will instead wait for Houston to release him. When that happens, here are three possible landing spots for the veteran receiver.
1. Seattle Seahawks
Doug Baldwin is a nice player but he doesn't scare anyone. Rookie receiver Paul Richardson showed some flashes before unfortunately tearing his ACL in the post-season. Percy Harvin is no longer around. For all of Seattle's many strengths as a football team, its group of pass-catchers is not one of them.
Johnson may not be the same No. 1 wide receiver he was in his prime - his 85 receptions, 11.0 receiving yards per catch and three touchdowns in 2014 were his lowest totals since he missed nine games in 2011 - but he can still help a team. For starters, you can't teach size and at 6-3 and 230 pounds, Johnson still has that in spades. He's the type of savvy veteran presence that contending teams usually opt for. He won't command the same type of $10 million-plus salary he was earning in Houston. But Seattle, with around $25 million in salary cap space, has more than enough room to bring him in as a primary target for Russell Wilson.
2. New England Patriots
Do the Patriots need Johnson like Seattle needs a wide receiver? No. Tom Brady and Bill Belichick have been making it work with a group of unheralded pass-catchers outside of Rob Gronkowski. But would the team like a big target who approaches the game with the same type of professionalism and dedication that they do? Absolutely.
Brady has been without a top end wide receiver since Randy Moss. While Johnson wouldn't come close to matching Moss's production, he could be more of a consistent threat than the Julian Edelmans and Brandon LaFells of the world. The Pats are actually $12 million over the cap at the moment, but that issue will likely be sorted out once the team addresses Darrelle Revis' contract.
3. Oakland Raiders
Johnson appeared in just four playoff games during his 12 years in Houston so it's doubtful he'll want to go to a team with little chance of making the playoffs. But, as the old adage goes, money talks.
The Oakland Raiders have nearly $55 million in salary cap space this offseason and they need to spend it to reach the minimum salary floor mandated by the NFL. It wouldn't be out of character for the team to throw a godfather offer at Johnson and it would just be human nature for Johnson to listen to such an offer.
