Bengals to host Rob Housler; Ravens offered him contract

The Cincinnati Bengals will play host to tight end Rob Housler right after one divisional rival offered him a deal.

According to Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun, Housler is visiting Cincinnati on Thursday after being offered a deal by the Baltimore Ravens, who also hosted him for a visit this week.

Veteran free agent tight end Rob Housler is visiting the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday, according to league sources.

Housler has had dialogue with the Ravens with no deal reached after being offered a contract, according to sources, and the situation could be revisited.

The former Arizona Cardinals starter could be a good fit for new Ravens offensive coordinator Marc Trestman as an athletic pass-catching tight end.

Housler is coming off a season to forget in Arizona after catching just nine passes for 129 yards and no touchdowns in 15 games with seven starts. He was targeted just 17 times.

Part of that can be attributed to Arizona going through three different quarterbacks over the course of the season. When Carson Palmer was the full-time starter in 2013, Housler was an effective pass-catcher. That year (2013), Houser caught 45 passes for 417 yards on 68 targets. He caught 39 passes for 454 yards and a touchdown as a rookie in 2012.

Though he's probably not a guy you want as your No. 1 tight end, he would be a great No. 2 next to a healthy Tyler Eifert in Cincinnati.