While in Las Vegas last weekend, Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer placed a friendly wager with T.J. Houshmandzadeh that the wide receiver would be given the franchise tag by the team.
Besides collecting what could be a big contract in free agency, Houshmandzadeh now gets to collect from Palmer.
With the Bengals tagging kicker Shayne Graham, it appears as if Houshmandzadeh's eight-year career with the team will be over. He placed his chances of remaining with the team at less than 10 percent. The Bengals had contacted his agent, Kennard McGuire, but there haven't been any contract discussions.
Houshmandzadeh will be among the most sought-after free agents when the signing period begins next Friday (Feb. 27). He is also hopeful of having a deal done within the first 48 hours.
On his eight-year career with the Bengals, Houshmandzadeh said: "You think about obviously what is the most recent memory, and it wasn't good. But I was a seventh-round pick: who would've thought I would've done what I did."
Houshmandzadeh's tag would've cost $9.88 million while Graham's is only $2.38 million.
Graham is the most accurate kicker in franchise history (87.5 percent) and was 21 of 24 on field goals last season. But his most memorable kick was a miss in the final seconds of overtime against the Eagles which led to the NFL's first tie since 2002.
When asked about his friend and teammate, Chad Ocho Cinco, Houshmandzadeh thinks that he might not be back with the Bengals either.
"He doesn't want to be there, and if he doesn't want to be there, let him go," Houshmandzadeh said.
Last week, agent Drew Rosenhaus said during his weekly appearance on a Miami radio station that this year's discussions about a possible trade would remain as quiet as possible.
"Last year we were very outspoken about what we wanted. This year we are going to operate behind the scenes. The bottom line is that's a communication thing that is going to take place completely between myself and the Bengals organization," Rosenhaus said.
