Texans cut losses on one of their biggest offseason whiffs but they will feel lingering fallout into 2026
The Texans offloaded one of their biggest whiffs from the 2025 offseason — and can’t afford more missteps like it moving forward.
The Houston Texans have officially found a buyer for one of their most disappointing free agent additions of the 2025 season. Not much has gone according to plan for Houston thus far in 2025, although the team is certainly hoping that a Week 4 victory over the Tennessee Titans can start to swing the tides.
One of the biggest issues for Houston thus far has been the offensive line. The unit was remade completely this past offseason but their ability to come together, gel, and play with cohesiveness early has been tested. Greatly.
No player has disappointed more than veteran offensive tackle Cam Robinson, although former safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson might be close! But now, he’s someone else’s problem. The Texans have traded Robinson to the Cleveland Browns.
Texans offload failed investment in Cam Robinson to Cleveland via late-round pick swap
Robinson signed a one-year, $12 million contract in Houston this spring in a contract that featured a $8.75 million signing bonus in March. The Browns will absorb the prorated amount of Robinson’s $2 million base salary after four games, plus Cleveland will acquire the playing time and performance incentives attached to Robinson’s contract as well.
That includes a $500,000 bonus for a Pro Bowl and $1.25 million in per-game active bonuses, too. Perhaps that classified as a win for Houston, but this contract certainly goes down as a scarlet letter in the Texans’ offseason plan.
Houston will carry a $7 million dead cap charge in 2026 for Robinson’s 59 offensive snaps played with the team this month. Do the Texans deserve a little bit of grace given that they landed rookie tackle Aireontae Ersery in the NFL Draft after signing Cam Robinson? Absolutely. But as a team that is going to start having some of the “second contract” conversations for their best players, contracts like Robinson’s are the kind this team can’t afford moving forward.
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Houston is moving on from him now.
