Third Team’s the Charm? Former Vikings CB Cam Dantzler Signs with the Houston Texans
Josh Frey
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CB Cam Dantzler has had an interesting offseason to say the least. Back in March, he was waived by the Minnesota Vikings, and in the short months since, the young cornerback has been bouncing around the league.
On Tuesday afternoon, reports surfaced that Dantzler had signed with the Houston Texans, his third team since leaving the Vikings.
Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 reported the signing via Twitter, writing, “Texans are signing veteran corner Cameron Dantzler following a successful workout, per a league source @KPRC2.”
The Vikings decision to part ways with the 24-year-old cornerback was a very surprising move when it happened and went against the grain of many other moves that followed throughout the offseason.
Regardless, the Vikings decided to part ways with Dantzler, waiving him on March 10th. He was promptly claimed by the Washington Commanders, joining a rebuilding franchise as they attempted to move forward with 2022 fifth-round pick Sam Howell.
Dantzler’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 hit free agency for the second time of the spring, and he remained there until July when the Buffalo Bills reached an agreement with him. 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, causing wonders of if his injury suffered during 2022 continued to hamper him.
After starting the first eight games for the Vikings in 2022, Dantzler went onto injured reserve with a high ankle sprain. He would come back to make one more start during the regular season with Minnesota in their Week 16 game against Detroit, but he played 49% of the snaps in that game and never started again.
Now, he heads to Houston with a chance to earn a spot with another team in 2023. He joins a room that includes 2022 third overall pick Derek Stingley, Steven Nelson, Shaquill Griffin, Desmond King, Tavierre Thomas, Darius Phillips, and Ka’dar Hollman.
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.