The Oakland Raiders continued to show their love for old, washed up ex-Bengals by signing WR TJ Houshmandzadeh this week.

Other than the fact that Houshmandzadeh once had Carson Palmer throwing balls to him, there is little to no upside in the Raiders making this move. Houshmandzadeh is 34, and he wasn’t really that good in his prime. He only figures to be less effective now. His best season as a pro came in 2007 where he caught 112 passes for 1,143 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Housh has been out of football since last season when he played with the Ravens. He had 30 catches for 398 yards and three TDs.

Adam_Schefter

Ravens reached agreement with former Seahawks wide receiver TJ Houshmandzadeh on a one-year, $855,000 deal. More at espn.com.

We never had any indication that the Chiefs were going to go after Houshmandzadeh but he might have been a good fit, especially considering the Ravens got him at a fairly low price.

Perhaps the Chiefs feel good about Jeremy Horne and Terrance Copper being their only WR depth but I know I don’t.

We showed interest in Bart Scott. He decided to play for his old defensive coordinator in the country’s biggest media market, not to mention a team closer to being a contender.

Stacy Andrews went to the Eagles. It’s obvious that he wanted to play with his brother in Philly.

It looks like the Giants, Seahawks and Titans are interested in Antonio Smith. If we aren’t among his first group of suitors with Todd Haley as our new coach, then I don’t want him.

We even went after Albert Haynesworth!

Now, I’m not going to be a Bob Gretzesque “yes man” for The Pioli Trinity, but at least we know they are out there. Honestly, I’m glad we didn’t land Haynesworth. I’m worried both of his best years were contract years. At the same time, it’s good to know we are willing to go out and spend some big money to get a special player. Here’s the scoop, from PFT:

The fact that the Chiefs got into the game is surprising, given that Haynesworth doesn’t seem to fit the high-character template that the team surely is applying under G.M. Scott Pioli.  Also, the Chiefs run at 3-4; Haynesworth presumably would have been used as a Richard Seymour-style defensive end in that system.

Then again, maybe the Chiefs got into the action simply to ensure that someone would overpay for Haynesworth.

Question is, did we leak this information to boost his value and jack up the Redskins’ (although it could have been the Bucs) cap? Or did we have legitimate interest in him? Well, considering that we were one of seven teams Michael Smith mentioned when it came to the most-interested suitors, and considering that John Clayton said more than half the league was interested last night, yeah, I’d say we were interested.

The big question now: where the hell do we go from here? I’m actually tentative to do another Blueprint, as they seem to jinx us. Then again, as I said yesterday, there are 31 teams who can also pursue these standout players.

Here’s what I would do.  With Haynesworth and Scott off of the board and too much money to sit on the sidelines, there are three standout players that are not being pursued as actively as they should be:

1. WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh

2. RB Derrick Ward

3. G Derrick Dockery

Housmandzadeh has been outplaying Chad “Ocho Stinko” Johnson for years. He and Dwayne Bowe could team up to be the next best thing to Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald. I wouldn’t mind it at all if we paid Housh No. 1 WR money. He’s more proven as a No. 1 than D-Bowe, and we have money we have to burn. This would allow us to pass on Michael Crabtree and address other major needs in the draft (like pass rusher or quarterback). For a receiver, Housh is also a blue collar player who the fans in K.C. would adore. All the Aaron Curry people talk about safe. Well, this signing is safe, too, but it could also be spectacular.

Ward averaged 5.6. yards per carry and according to the Football Outsiders was the most efficient back in the game. He can simply do it all and isn’t a small back at 235 pounds. I think he could be a Chester Taylor/Thomas Jones-type player. At the price he is commanding, he would be a steal.The Bengals and Lions are after him right now. Think he wouldn’t rather come to K.C.? Screw lowering Larry Johnson’s value. It’s already low, and the Patriots just signed Fred Taylor. L.J. won’t be going there. This would allow us to cut Larry if we needed to.

Dockery is still one of the best guards in the league. The Bills are obviously just cutting costs, which makes sense since some people think they could eventually end up in Los Angeles. Hell, they are already desperate enough to play one game in Toronto. With Waters wanting out, we could use a younger guard of his caliber as insurance. Dockery fits the bill.

Considering their services haven’t provoked any Haynesworth-type bidding wars, we should bid for these players’ services.There are also plenty of defensive ends (Igor Olshansky) and tackles (Ray Willis) available to focus on those three players, not to mention other guards (Brandon Moore, Kendell Simmons) and receivers (Nate Washington) if we whiff on Dockery and Housh. If you ask me, Ward is the only major running back target worth pursuing. He’s only 28 years old, and has very low mileage on his tires for that age. That’s why I have him listed above Dockery on the priority scale.

Now, I know some people are thinking, whoa, what about the defense? I clearly state that we can get a defensive end after we pursue these three players. Same thing with a linebacker for the most part. Plus, this draft is loaded with backers. Larry English in round two? Could happen. Remember, our defense may have been 29th in points allowed, but our offense was 26th in points scored. Also remember that we have an offensive-minded coach. Offense is just as big of a need as defense.

Now that the Bucs just traded for Kellen Winslow, I think it’s time for The Pioli Trinity to make their own splash. I’ve been a loyal fan all year and right now all I have is coal in my stocking. I’m trying to be patient, but it’s hard — isn’t it?

Boldin requested a trade following the 2007 season when his fellow wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald signed a four-year, $40 million contract extension with Arizona [2] and the Cardinals declined to renegotiate Boldin’s contract. He has two years with $12 million remaining on his current contract.

So, Boldin will not  be coming with Todd Haley to the Chiefs. If we want to add another elite receiver, our only two options are really either drafting Michael Crabtree or signing T.J. Houshmandzadeh, who in my opinion is a lot like Dwayne Bowe.