The Houston Texans made a big trade in the 2025 offseason to acquire Super Bowl champion C.J. Gardner-Johnson to bolster their secondary. They didn’t reap many benefits from that deal, as Gardner-Johnson played three games in Houston before being released. It wasn’t a performance-based release, as the 28-year-old safety revealed the spat that led to his exit.
C.J. Gardner-Johnson Speaks About Ugly Departure from Houston
Gardner-Johnson got cut because he got into an argument. He revealed that when the Texans went to West Virginia during training camp, he got into an argument with a friend of general manager Nick Caserio.
“That’s how I got (cut) in Houston,” said Gardner-Johnson. “One person that’s not technically a part of the organization called me a B-word at Greenbrier. I get out my body; he says something to the GM, and the next thing I’m cut.”
When The Athletic’s Tim Graham asked about the spat, the Texans declined to comment.
This was not how Gardner-Johnson expected his tenure in Houston to go, but he found a home shortly after in Chicago. Gardner-Johnson doesn’t seem happy with how this exit is portraying him, and made sure to explain how this ugly exit transpired.
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“If y’all going to cut me, cut me,” Gardner-Johnson said. “But I’ll give nobody reasons to cut me. I haven’t. I don’t. I’m not a cancer. There’s nobody in this locker room that says, ‘Chauncey’s a problem.’ The media loves me. The only thing that’ll do it is something that triggers somebody that has a say in the building that can alter somebody else’s mind. That happens every time.”
In the end, the Texans cut ties with Gardner-Johnson after the spat, and the general manager’s friend seemingly had influence in that. Gardner-Johnson wasn’t a huge miss for the Texans, though, as Houston maintained one of the best secondaries in the NFL with Derek Stingley Jr., Kamari Lassiter, Calen Bullock, and Jalen Pitre.
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Gardner-Johnson finished the 2025 season with two interceptions, 66 tackles, and five tackles for loss (TFLs). He ranked 63rd in PFSN’s Safety Impact Metric, and now, he’s headed to the AFC East to help the Buffalo Bills try to get over the hump and reach the Super Bowl they’ve been chasing for years.
The Bills are scheduled to visit the Texans in Week 1 of the 2026 season in Houston, and Gardner-Johnson will almost assuredly be playing for his revenge on his former team’s home turf. This could turn out to be one of the games of the season with two teams with Super Bowl aspirations, and the Gardner-Johnson storyline will add to the fireworks.
