On Tuesday September 23, 2025, the Houston Texans released CJ Gardner-Johnson and in the aftermath, some San Francisco 49ers insiders and fans urged the 49ers to sign him.
“CJ is a pain in the butt, but he’s a real playmaker! 49ers?” longtime 49ers reporter Larry Krueger wrote on X.
Gardner-Johnson, 27, was drafted in the fourth round by the New Orleans Saints in 2019. In addition to stops with the Saints and Texans, Gardner-Johnson has played with the Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions. He won the Super Bowl with the Eagles this past season.
Gardner-Johnson’s best two seasons, in 2022 and 2024, have both come with the Eagles. In two years there (28 games, 28 starts) Gardner-Johnson had a whopping 12 interceptions, 20 pass breakups, a forced fumble, a sack, and 96 solo tackles.
It’s clear to see what Krueger means by the statement that Gardner-Johnson is a playmaker.
Gardner-Johnson Is An Old Nemesis Of The 49ers
If the 49ers actually go through and sign CJ Garner-Johnson, seeing him in the red and gold is going to take some adjusting for Niners fans.
49ers fans have had plenty of reasons to despise Gardner-Johnson over the years. He has a longstanding beef with former 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel.
He also very famously waved goodbye to 49ers fans when he was a member of the Lions during the 2024 NFC Championship Game. The Lions were beating the 49ers 20-7 with about 6 minutes left in the second quarter when the incident occurred, with Gardner-Johnson seemingly indicating to the 49ers crowd that he believed the Lions had already secured a victory.
The 49ers went on to win the game 34-31 and advance to Super Bowl LVIII.
But, if Gardner-Johnson can use his antics to terrorize other teams instead of the 49ers, perhaps Niners faithful could welcome him in San Francisco.
Given that Deebo Samuel now plays for the Washington Commanders, maybe getting acclimated to San Francisco would be a little easier for Gardner-Johnson.
Do the 49ers Need Gardner-Johnson?
Perhaps the best argument for why the 49ers could use Gardner Johnson is that they have struggled to create turnovers in the secondary.
The Niners are one of only 5 teams that do not have an interception through three weeks. They are also in the bottom half of the league with only 3 total takeaways on the season.
However, the 49ers do have a lot of talent at safety. Rookie Marques Sigle and veteran Jason Pinnock have both been great for the 49ers so far this season, and they will eventually return Malik Mustapha when he’s healthy as well.
Gardner-Johnson could pose as an upgrade as a depth piece for the 49ers, especially if they want to move on from Ji’Ayir Brown. But that depends on if Gardner-Johnson even wants to or is willing to be a backup. In his 77 career regular season NFL games, Gardner-Johnson has 64 starts. Even this season, before getting cut by Houston, he started all 3 games.
Gardner-Johnson is exiting a situation where he had former 49ers defensive coordinator Demeco Ryans as his head coach. That could also be a reason why the 49ers don’t want to sign him — if he didn’t work well with Demeco Ryans, what’s to say he would with Robert Saleh?
49ers fans, do you think the Niners should pursue signing CJ Gardner-Johnson?
San Francisco 49ers Urged To Sign Former Nemesis, Super Bowl Winning Defensive Back