Houshmandzadeh hopeful for new start after dropped pass

T.J. Houshmandzadeh's last play as a Baltimore Raven might be a dropped pass that ended the team's season.

Needless to say, he isn't happy about that.

"I wish things had ended better," the veteran wide receiver told the Carroll County Times in a story posted Wednesday. "I'm not a guy who drops the ball, but I dropped a ball that really matters. Last year was a really bad year for me on the field.

"The last two years have been the most disappointing years I've had. I know people will say I can't play no more. If I get to the right team, I'll shock a lot of people."

Houshmandzadeh was shocked in January when he dropped a perfectly placed fourth-and-18 pass that could have given the Ravens a first down with 1:09 left in the AFC Divisional Playoff Game. But the ball bounced off Houshmandzadeh's chest and fell to the turf, sending the Ravens home with a season-ending 31-24 loss and the AFC North rival Pittsburgh Steelers to the next round and eventually Super Bowl XLV.

Houshmandzadeh signed a one-year contract with the Ravens last season after being cut by the Seattle Seahawks. And with the Ravens taking wide receivers Torrey Smith and Tandon Doss in the April draft, Houshmandzadeh knows he'll need to find yet another home this year.

"I love the people there," Houshmandzadeh said of the Ravens. "I can't say a bad word about them. I wish I could come back, but I know the dynamic and how it works."

Houshmandzadeh, 33, started just two games for the Ravens -- his fewest since 2002, his second NFL season -- and caught 30 passes for 398 yards and three touchdowns. Despite that decreased production, Houshmandzadeh believes he still has something to offer a team.

"I need to go to the right team and get the right opportunity," he said. "Here's the thing: You can be a good-looking man and you like a woman, but it doesn't matter if she doesn't like you. I want to go to a team that wants me to play for them."

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Brady happy to rejoin fellow Pats, hopeful of labor resolution

Tom Brady is putting in some football work this week.

After three days of workouts with some of his New England Patriots teammates, the quarterback headlined a charity touch football game at Harvard University.

Brady took a break during halftime of Friday night's game benefiting Best Buddies International, which supports programs for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, to briefly comment on the NFL's labor stalemate and when it will end.

"Nobody knows. Hopefully soon," Brady said. "There's been a lot (of) positive moves from both sides. Everyone is working hard toward a great outcome. And I'm confident that a lot of reasonable people will come to a very reasonable agreement."

Brady's comments were rather polite compared to the arguments made earlier in the day before a three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis.

Brady, who's among the 10 plaintiffs in the antitrust lawsuit filed against the league, said he's looking forward to the 2011 season, even if fans and some players are growing restless during the nearly three-month work stoppage that's threatening it.

Brady said veterans and young players alike have a responsibility to leave the NFL in better conditions than when they entered.

"We all stick together and we realize how important each one of us are to each other," he said. "A lot of guys really care about the game."

More than 40 Patriots players joined Brady for workouts Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at Boston College's Alumni Stadium. Coaches couldn't attend because of the lockout, leaving Brady in charge.

"It's been fun to see a lot of the guys," the quarterback told the Boston Herald. "I think there's a lot of good work."

Brady also said his right foot is fine nearly five months after he had surgery to repair a stress fracture.

"I feel good," he said. "Good enough to run around here and have fun, and I'm excited for football season."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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