After missing out on several of the top free agents Sunday, the Oakland Raiders made good on their promise to spend money by securing an agreement with Kansas City center Rodney Hudson on a record contract.

Hudson is expected to sign a five-year, $44.5 million deal Tuesday with the Raiders. His average of $8.9 million a season will be a record for a center.

The Raiders are entering free agency with close to $70 million in cap space. They were expected to be major players, but they watched targets such as Ndamukong Suh, Randall Cobb, Jerry Hughes and Jeremy Maclin commit elsewhere.

Hudson was one of Oakland’s top targets, and he is a good fit for the team. The Raiders are adopting a faster-paced offense (they will use the no-huddle attack often), and Hudson is a perfect center for that attack. He can get out in front of defenders and create lanes. It's a nice addition for young quarterback Derek Carr.

Hudson's arrival means Stefen Wisniewski will be leaving the Raiders. A second-round pick in 2011, Wisniewski was a solid starter. But I got the sense the new coaching staff wanted to move forward without him.

Hudson, 25, should be a good anchor to an offensive line that is still growing. Along with left tackle Donald Penn and left guard Gabe Jackson, Hudson gives the Raiders three solid starters on the line. They are still looking for a guard. One option is San Francisco’s Mike Iupati.

Now that the Raiders have jumped into the free-agent pool, they have to keep swimming. The problem is that there aren't many true game-changers left. Oakland has been connected to tight ends Jermaine Gresham (Cincinnati) and Jordan Cameron (Cleveland) and Denver defensive tackle Terrance Knighton, among others.

I expect the Raiders to sign multiple players -- and they need to because of a poor roster and all the cap room. Hudson is a solid start, but he can't be the prize, simply because center is not considered a premium position. The Raiders have to keep on going in free agency.