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Andre Johnson to be traded or cut, could he reunite with Derek Carr in Oakland?

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Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Yes, I said reunite. And no, I'm not talking about his older brother, David. Once upon a time, a 12-year-old Derek Carr and rookie wide receiver Andre Johnson struck up a strong friendship. They were close enough that Andre Johnson was attending Derek's Jr High football games.

The two of them played catch in practice and became very close. It was Derek's brother David's second season in the NFL since becoming the first drafted player for the expansion Texans. After watching his brother get pummeled his rookie season, the Texans went and got him a weapon in the form of Andre Johnson.

"It's actually pretty crazy, especially just seeing him now in the league," Johnson told the Houston Chronicle last September. "He was a little kid running around here. I used to always talk to him after every game. He came out to practice. I got a chance to go watch him play a little bit in middle school. I've been following him since then. . . It's funny, man, to know that I'm going to be playing against him."

Now 12 years later, Derek Carr is entering his second NFL season and the Texans have granted the 2-time All Pro and 7-time Pro Bowl receiver's request to seek a trade and if he can't find a suitor, they will cut him. This was first reported by John McClain of the Houston Chronicle.

"Not a lot of kids have a Hall of Fame wide receiver coming to their Junior High football games," said Derek last September prior to the Raiders facing the Texans. "I'd always joke around with him ‘Someday, I'm gonna throw you the ball'."

With these recent developments, Derek's proclamation is certainly possible, however seemingly unlikely for the soon-to-be 34-year-old Johnson to continue his career at a high level. Then again, even at 33, Johnson had 936 yards receiving for a struggling Texans team and is just a season removed from catching 109 passes for 1407 yards, earning his 7th trip to the Pro Bowl.

Yeah, the Raiders need to focus on younger players and that could be enough to keep these two from teaming up. Then again, even at 34, Johnson provides more than any receiver currently on the Raiders roster. Having him on a roster provides a great deal of security for Derek Carr. The kind of security he saw provided his older brother for four years in Houston.