The Detroit Lions made a big move last offseason to bolster their struggling secondary, signing safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson away from the NFC Champions Philadelphia Eagles.
Now, one injury-plagued season later, Johnson could be on his way out of Detroit and headed back to Philadelphia.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that the Eagles have hopes of bringing Johnson back in free agency to once again anchor their secondary. Fowler added that there are other teams that could be in the running for the veteran safety.
A C.J. Gardner-Johnson reunion in Philadelphia is on my radar,” Fowler wrote. “The Eagles realized they missed the talented safety in the secondary. Tennessee makes sense for him, too. Titans defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson is a big fan of Gardner-Johnson from their Philly days.”
Safety’s Rough Season in Detroit
The Lions had big hopes for Gardner-Johnson, who earned some big praise from general manager Brad Holmes and was slated to take over a starting role. During the team’s minicamp in June, head coach Dan Campbell noted that Gardner-Johnson was already taking over a leadership position and pushing teammates.
“He’s got a contagious energy,” Campbell said on June 7. “One of the reasons C.J. [Gardner-Johnson] is that way is because that’s how he gets his engine going. In turn, that just spills over into the offense and your teammates.
You can’t help — the level of intensity. It raises. I think that makes everybody around you better and more competitive.”
The energy did not last long in the regular season. Johnson suffered a torn pectoral muscle in a Week 2 loss to the Seattle Seahawks and remained on injured reserve until the season finale.
Gardner-Johnson was not the only new acquisition to the secondary lost to injury in 2023. The Lions also signed cornerback Emmanuel Moseley, who was injured in his first game back after recovering from a torn ACL and missed the remainder of the season.
