Cam Dantzler Quickly Made an Impact with His New Team
About a week ago, former Vikings CB Cam Dantzler signed with the Houston Texans. It was the latest installment of what has been a very strange offseason for the young cornerback.
However, Dantzler has come into Houston and made a very fast impact with the Texans. They played their final preseason game on Sunday evening against the New Orleans Saints. Despite only being with the team for a few days, Dantzler got ample playing time.
The cornerback played 35 defensive snaps against New Orleans, and he actually sealed the victory for Houston by snagging a game-winning interception at the end of the fourth quarter. With the Saints trailing 17-13, rookie QB Jake Haener attempted to lead a game-winning drive, but on a pass to TE Lucas Krull, Dantzler made a nifty interception to end the comeback attempt.
Dantzler was waived by the Vikings back in March, allowing the Washington Commanders to claim him off waivers shortly thereafter.
The cornerback’s tenure in Washington would be short-lived, though. Less than two months after Washington claimed the young corner, he was released by the team on May 30th. The interesting part of this decision comes in the fact that the Commanders CB room wasn’t exactly set in stone.
They drafted Emmanuel Forbes in the first round round of the 2023 Draft, and Kendall Fuller is a strong veteran presence, but behind these players sit Benjamin St. Juste, Danny Johnson, Jartavius Martin, Rachad Wildgoose, Christian Holmes, and Tariq Castro-Fields. It certainly seems like there would be room for another player with starting experience in this room.
Dantzler remained on the free agency market for about a month before signing with the Buffalo Bills in July. After spending a few weeks with a rebuilding franchise, he suddenly had an opportunity to prove himself worthy of a chance on a bonafide Super Bowl contender.
That stint would prove to be very short as well. Just a few days after joining the Bills, Dantzler was again released by Buffalo. This time, it came with an injury designation.
Dantzler then signed with the Texans on August 22nd, and he is hoping to rejuvenate his young career. Obviously, the 2020 third-round pick’s career hasn’t gone as envisioned to this point, but his fast impact in Houston could go a long way towards ensuring he makes a roster this fall.
Other cornerbacks on the Texans roster at this point include 2022 third overall pick Derek Stingley, Steven Nelson, Shaquill Griffin, Desmond King, Tavierre Thomas, Darius Phillips, and Ka’dar Hollman.
Over the next 28 hours or so, teams must cut down their rosters from 90 players to 53. The official cutdown deadline is set for Tuesday, August 29th at 3 PM Central. Hopefully, the former Viking gets a chance to prove himself this year.
2023 Vikings Roster Cuts Tracker
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.