Ravens trading for Boldin?

Word is the Ravens are considering trading for Cardinals disgruntled wide-receiver Anquan Boldin.

Right now the Cardinals are asking for a first and third round pick for Boldin. If these picks are taken from the 2009 draft, it would leave the Ravens with only 4 picks on draft day.

Boldin is the #1 WR the Ravens have needed for years, but he doesn’t come without risks. In six seasons he’s played 16 games only twice, and he’s missed 4 games in each of the last 2 seasons.

Then there are the attitude problems. Boldin was seen complaining to coaches and throwing towels on the sidelines during the 2008 playoffs. Will that emotional baggage come with him? Or does he leave it in Arizona?

Joe Flacco could desperately use a huge target like Boldin in 2009 to go along with Derrick Mason and Mark Clayton. But it’s unlikely the Ravens part with the draft picks it would take to land him. Since the Ravens moved to Baltimore, they have put more stock in the draft than probably any other organization in the NFL.

However, if the Ravens are ever to have a bona fide #1 WR, they’re probably not going to be drafting him. The Ravens have never drafted a WR that has had 1,000 yards receiving in a season and until they drafted Flacco, QB and WR were the positions the Ravens still seem to have trouble evaluating in the draft.

If the Ravens are in deed looking to upgrade at the WR position, and they should be, a smarter route would be to pursue the Bengals’ Chad Johnson. Johnson is coming off a bad season, largely due to the fact that Carson Palmer missed most of the season and the Bengals blackballed him after Johnson’s public outbursts.

The Bengals had their chance to unload Johnson last year, but turned down the Redskins’ offer of 2 first rounders for Chad. Cincinnati is reportedly still asking for a first round pick for Johnson, but there’s no chance the Bengals will get that kind of return. Johnson is still a good receiver, but is getting older (he’s 31), and despite the legit excuses for his down year in 2008, it’s unlikely that he has another 1,400 yard receiving season.

But Johnson will rebound with a chance of scenery, and I think Baltimore is about the best change of scenery Chad could ask for.