Ozzie on Mason, Troy

March 9, 2010 10:18 AM by Dan Kolko View Comments

While Anquan Boldin was the man of the hour during his introductory press conference late yesterday afternoon, there were still a few topics unrelated to the three-time Pro Bowl receiver that were tossed GM Ozzie Newsome's way.

One of those was the situation surrounding wide receiver Derrick Mason.

Asked about where the 36-year-old Mason fits into the Ravens' plans now, Newsome said he's still an option.

"I will always say we'll always look to add good football players to our team," he said. "I don't ever close a door on anyone, especially someone with the talent of Derrick Mason."

Mason is an unrestricted free agent, and has made it clear that he would like a two-year contract from whatever team he ends up joining.

Before the trade for Boldin, the Ravens had re-signing Mason high on their list of priorities because of their lack of depth at wide receiver. Now, while they still might want Mason back, the Ravens can afford to slow-play things and see what other offers he receives on the free agent market.

Another non-Boldin question that Newsome received was in regards to backup quarterback Troy Smith.

Smith's agent, Ralph Cindrich, has been very aggressive over the last few months in his attempts to get Smith traded. Yesterday, a story in the Canton Repository had a quote from Cindrich saying that Smith, "would crawl from Baltimore right now to be able to play in Cleveland."

Asked about Smith's trade requests immediately after the Boldin press conference, Newsome replied, "I don't discuss stuff like that."

Ironically, the Browns traded for quarterback Seneca Wallace just hours later, all but ruling out Cleveland as a possibility for Smith.

That might cross one team off Cindrich's list, but I doubt it'd the last we hear from Smith's agent this offseason.