CJ Gardner-Johnson blindsided by trade: 'I thought it was April Fool's'

Well-traveled defensive back CJ Gardner-Johnson is on the move again, this time headed to Houston. He was traded by the Philadelphia Eagles on Tuesday.

The news came as a significant shock to the Super Bowl LIX champion, who is coming off one of his best seasons yet. Now, fresh off a Super Bowl title, he’ll be headed to the Texans.

“I ain’t going to lie to you, I thought it was April Fool’s,” Gardner-Johnson told viewers on a stream. “I ain’t going to lie. I was like man, that’s April Fool’s, they damn sure got me. They playing crazy with me right now.”

Gardner-Johnson broke down the reality of the situation for the Eagles, noting that management told him they had to move him in order to sign some of the team’s younger stars. Gardner-Johnson didn’t quite fit into the mix anymore.

Despite that, the talented defensive back seemed to leave on good terms. That’s not always the case in moves like this.

“But no, wasn’t no love lost. Wasn’t no bad blood,” Gardner-Johnson said. “It was a great phone call. Great phone call. It was an amazing phone call, to be all the way thorough. Great phone call.”

The trade for Gardner-Johnson involved Philadelphia getting former first-round pick Kenyon Green. The Eagles also executed a pick-swap, with the team getting a fifth-round 2026 pick, while the Texans pick up a sixth-round 2026 pick.

Gardner-Johnson signed a three-year, $27 million contract with the Eagles in March last year. For the 2024 season, Garnder-Johnson played in 16 regular season games and recorded 59 tackles, 12 passes defended and six interceptions, with one returned for a touchdown. He then appeared in all four of the Eagles’ playoff games and helped the team win Super Bowl LIX.

This was CJ Gardner-Johnson’s second stint with the Eagles, as his first was in 2022. During the 2022 season, Gardner-Johnson tallied 67 tackles, eight passes defended and six interceptions. He helped the Eagles reach Super Bowl LVII and had four tackles in the loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Gardner-Johnson was selected by the New Orleans Saints in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. The former Florida Gators star played in New Orleans for three seasons before joining the Eagles in 2022.

On3’s Brian Jones also contributed to this report.