"Getting familiar with the Ravens' playbook is the first priority for wide receiver T.J.Houshmandzadeh. Getting comfortable with his new team's colors is another objective.

"It was a little weird when I tried my helmet on today," the team's newest offensive addition said at a Tuesday afternoon news conference at the team's training facility in Owings Mills. "I'm not a person that really likes change. I'm starting to realize that about myself. But sometimes change is better."

After eight seasons of playing against them as a member of the Cincinnati Bengals and one year with the Seattle Seahawks, Houshmandzadeh gets to line up with the Ravens, who agreed to a one-year, $855,000 deal.

Houshmandzadeh, who will wear No. 84, sounded relieved he wouldn't have to decipher defenses led by linebacker Ray Lewis and safety Ed Reed.

"I know Baltimore. I know what these guys bring to the table because I've played against them," Houshmandzadeh said. "I've sat in rooms when the coaches had to game-plan against these guys, and I know how stressful it is for those guys because I've been on the opposite side of that and of how much stress that defense puts on people. So, to be on that side and not have to deal with it and worry about what protection is going to pick this up and what protection is going to pick that up, it's great. I feel like I'm coming to play with guys that are similar with me emotionally, the way they play the game and how they love the game. And that's where I need to be."

Houshmandzadeh joins a team with Super Bowl aspirations and an offense that has potent weapons in wide receivers Anquan Boldin and Derrick Mason, running back Ray Rice and tight end Todd Heap.

When Donte' Stallworth returns from a broken foot next month, finding playing time for the top four wide receivers could be a chore. But Houshmandzadeh said that won't be an issue.

"We'll see what happens, but I'm a firm believer that if you show the coaches that they should get you involved, they'll get you involved, and that's what I plan on doing every day when it's time to practice," he said.

Perhaps the lone knock regarding the addition of Houshmandzadeh is that he is a possession-type receiver, similar to Boldin and Mason. With Stallworth on the sideline, there is no prototypical "vertical threat."

But Houshmandzadeh dismissed that notion, saying: "If one guy is running this route, then the next guy will run that route. I feel like I can run every route, and I'm sure that 'Mase' and 'Quan' feel the same way. Just throw the ball, and we'll make a play. That's how I feel, and I'm sure that's how those guys feel also.""