WR Devin Hester: Houshmandzadeh Never Contacted by Bears
by John M. Crist of BearReport.com, September 23, 2009 at 6:23pm ET
Devin Hester Profile
T.J. Houshmandzadeh was considered to be the best free agent receiver on the market this past offseason, and the Bears were in desperate need of some help at that position, but he ended up going to Seattle instead and signed a five-year, $40 million contract.
While it's not surprising he landed with the Seahawks, especially with that kind of money involved, Chicago football fans might be curious to discover that general manager Jerry Angelo never had Houshmandzadeh on his radar in the first place.
"The Bears ain't holler at me, man," Houshmandzadeh said Wednesday to the Chicago media via conference call at Halas Hall. "Jerry Angelo probably didn't think I can play, so I'm going to show him Sunday."
One of the most prolific possession wideouts in the NFL and coming off five straight seasons of at least 904 receiving yards with the Bengals, Houshmandzadeh might have expected Angelo to come calling with the still-learning Devin Hester and the still-inexperienced Earl Bennett atop his depth chart, but that call never came.
"I don't know," said Houshmandzadeh when asked why Angelo didn't at least reach out to him. "I'm not sure. I didn't hear from Chicago. I don't think my agent did. I know I didn't. He didn't say anything to me about it, but it is what it is."
Houshmandzadeh actually believes Hester has what it takes to be a quality receiver in this league, provided one thing happens.
"He should be able to develop into a pretty good receiver," he said, "if he has a coach and they open up the pass game for him."
For the record, Hester entered 2009 with 71 career catches. Houshmandzadeh has surpassed that total in a single season five times.
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