One of the easiest ways Andre Johnson could force his way out of Houston would be to refuse to restructure his contract this offseason. Johnson will turn 34 before the start of the 2015 season, and he is set to count roughly $16 million against the Texans’ salary cap. Is he willing to lower that number?
Johnson reportedly told the Texans over the summer that he would like to be released or traded. Opponents have even noted this season that Johnson seems unhappy with his current situation, but something must have changed.
Perhaps Johnson realizes his skills are declining. When asked recently if he would be willing to take a pay cut, Johnson did not shoot the idea down.
“Nobody wants to hear that,” he told Brian T. Smith of The Houston Chronicle. “But it’s the nature of the business. I’ve seen it happen, heard it happen, had it happen to friends of mine. I understand that.”
Andre Melton, Johnson’s uncle and longtime advisor, openly said that the seven-time Pro Bowler is willing to take less money.
“We understand it’s a business and we’re willing to deal with that,” Melton said. “And Andre doesn’t mind having a pay cut. … They’re going to come in the offseason and say, ‘Hey, Andre: This is what we need to do.’ If we can come to some type of common ground with everybody where everybody can be happy, then we’ll work on that, that’ll be fine. And if we can’t, it will be sad to say. … But we’ll see who can give (us) a shot at a ring.”
Both Johnson and Melton said numerous times that Johnson wants to remain in Houston and win a Super Bowl with the Texans.
Unless he racks up 198 yards against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, Johnson is not going to eclipse the 1,000-yard receiving mark. He has surpassed that mark in six of his past eight seasons, and he only played in roughly half of his team’s games the two seasons he didn’t get there.
DeAndre Hopkins is ready to take over as Houston’s No. 1 receiver. If that’s something Johnson can accept, the Texans may still be willing to pay him more money than other teams would be if he hit the open market. Perhaps that island Johnson was talking about visiting no longer sounds as appealing.
