Veteran NFL receiver Derrick Mason was having trouble fitting in with the New York Jets, so the organization has decided to ship him to Houston.

Mason, a 15-year veteran, was traded to the Texans on Tuesday for a conditional seventh-round pick according to several outlets. The Texans are in desperate need of wideout help with All-Pro Andre Johnson temporarily sidelined, after having minor surgery last week on his hamstring.

Mason’s services will be needed to fill the void left by Johnson. He should be a nice insurance policy once Johnson returns in the event the Texans primary playmaker is injured again.

The trade also ends a few uneventful months for Mason with the Jets. He wasn’t performing up to the hopeful expectations of the organization when it outbid the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans for his services this summer.

Mason had just 13 receptions for 115 yards in five games as the Jets No.3 receiver. There might have been a variety of reasons for the lack of productivity, writes ESPNNewYork.com. The excuses ranged from play-calling to, perhaps, the possibility that Mason wasn’t absorbing the playbook because of the unique arrangement he had with the Jets to be able to spend every Monday and Tuesday at home in Nashville during the season.

Mason, 37, has eight 1,000-yard receiving campaigns, but hasn’t hit that plateau since 2008. But he did go over the 12,000 career receiving yards this past Sunday.

Contact Terrance Harris at terrancefharris@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @Terranceharris

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