Why did the Bengals elect to franchise tag PK Shayne Graham and not TJ Houshmandzadeh. I'll give you three guesses, and all three answers have to be money.

Plain and simple, end of story.

It would've cost the Bengals just under $10 million for one year of Houshmandzadeh. Tagging Graham is a $2.5 million ticket. That's not to say that Graham isn't a valuable asset. The free agent pool for kickers is limited this off season. But kickers are a dime a dozen in the NFL. And honestly, as bad as this team is, should we really believe that the Bengals will be playing games that will be decided by three or fewer points anytime in the near future?

And who is Carson Palmer going to be tossing the ball to next fall, Graham? Right now, your Bengals wide receiving corps consists of Chad Ocho Cinco, who would probably volunteer to hide in TJ's luggage just to escape Bengal-dom; Chris Henry, who's one good cocktail away from a permanent ban by the NFL Commissioner; Andre Caldwell, who didn't play WR at all until the final game of 2008; and 2008 second round pick Jerome Simpson, who was less visible in the Fall of 1008 than Dick Cheney. Get those season tickets now.

The latest Broo View Podcast is up and posted on my web site: http://www.kenbroo.com/. But, if you're in a hurry, you can download it here. My guests in this episode are Jon Heyman, the baseball writer from Sports Illustrated and from The Sporting News, senior writer Stan McNeal.

Alex Rodriguez looked like a man anguished by the truth, or at least his version of it. I watched his news conference today. I don't doubt he was wrought with emotion. But honestly, are you buying this 'cousin injected me story'? Where's the cousin? What's his name? And this 'boli' that was injected into A-Rod that he said was an over the counter thing in the Dominican Republic? Apparently the chief sports doctor down there says the only way 'boli' is available is on the black market. So apparently laws were broken in that country. Maybe that's why we can't find the cousin.

It's been an awful year for any baseball free agent not named CC Sabathia or Mark Texeira. Are NFL free agents looking at the same scenario. Our pal, Mike Florio from profootballtalk.com weighs on on that.

Personally, I think it's going to be a rough winter for any NFL free agent not named TJ Houshmandzadeh.

When we first heard the rumor (and it turns out, that's all it was) that the Bengals were shopping TJ Houshmandzadeh, it seemed strange. But with the way the Bengals conduct their business, not totally out of the range of possibility. Here's the history.

Tuesday, on its web site, the Dayton Daily News reported that the Bengals and the 49ers were in discussions about a deal that would send TJ out west. The trading deadline in the NFL is next Tuesday. So the timing made some sense. Here's what didn't: Houshmandzadeh is an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season. Why would a team, particularly the 49ers who are a long shot to make the playoffs, deal for a player that has a good chance of leaving in free agency next winter? Turns out, several sources and web sites were shooting down the alleged interest on the part of the 49ers by the middle of last evening. Today, at his regularly scheduled news conference, Marvin Lewis torpedoed the story as well.

The Bengals spent two high draft picks on wide receivers last spring. Neither Jerome Simpson nor Andre Caldwell have played much at all this season. They might soon, with this season spiraling out of control. But until and if they show they can play at this level, any thoughts of trading or letting Houshmandzadeh go are simply nuts.

It's posted! The latest Bengals Report Podcast. Marc Hardin and I review the Bengals vs. Cowboys game. You'll hear comments from Marvin Lewis and TJ Houshmandzadeh. You can find the Bengals Report Podcast on my web site: www.kenbroo.com OR you can download it here!