Bush rich, but he's not worth it
Posted: Friday, December 07, 2007 10:54 PM
Reggie Bush has a partial tear in his left posterior cruciate ligament. This is not good news for the New Orleans Saints, whose season began with the loss of running back Deuce McAllister and continued with losses in seven of the 12 games they’ve played to date.
Bush may or may not play this week and the rest of the season, but whether he does or not, the injury just underlines the fragility of the running back position in the NFL. And it should underscore once again the risks teams take when they waste high draft picks on the breed.
It’s not just the knee. Before Bush hurt it, he wasn’t dominating the NFL. As the Saints featured back, starting 10 of 12 games, he’s gained 581 yards rushing with a long run of 22 yards and picked up another 417 yards on 73 receptions. Those numbers are those of a back who’s helpful, but not a game-breaker. He’s scored six touchdowns, a total more than offset by 10 dropped passes and eight fumbles.
The guy has got a ton of talent that so far worked far better in the college game than it does in the pros. You can only hope that the knee recovers and he finds his niche in the game. In the meantime, rest assured that he won’t lack for income. According to recent reports, he was the second-highest earning athlete under the age of 25 with a total take of $24 million this year thanks to his huge endorsement portfolio. (LeBron James was first with $27 million and Maria Sharapova third with $23 million.)
But the money’s for the retirement fund. What fans should care about is what he can do for them now and in the future. So far for Bush, it’s been not a lot.
I didn’t think he’d have as little impact as he has back in the spring of 2006 when I was one of the few columnists to say that the Texans were better off drafting Mario Williams than Bush. Turns out I was right. Bush is down and maybe out and Williams is threatening to be an All Pro.
When I made my suggestion about the draft, I thought the Heisman Trophy winner would have some spectacular moments, but I also thought a premier defensive end would probably have a greater impact for a much longer career than a running back. The history of highly-hyped college running backs in the game isn’t very good anyway. Some of the greatest of the high picks – Barry Sanders, O.J. Simpson, Eric Dickerson, Earl Campbell – never got to a championship game. And some of the greatest period – Emmitt Smith prime among them – weren’t high draft choices.
The positions you draft high are quarterback, left tackle and impact defensive linemen or linebackers. At least that’s the way I see it, and it’s because they have the greatest impact on the game. With quarterbacks, you just keep drafting them – one a year if you can – until you find a keeper. Very good running backs come from just about everyone in the draft.
Check out the draft list from 2006 and you’ll notice that Indianapolis landed Joseph Addai at No. 30 and the Patriots snagged Laurence Maroney at 21. Both have been better than Bush.
Anyway, when Williams started slowly last year and Bush finally scored a few touchdowns and had some electrifying runs, Williams got beaten up in the media, as did the Texans, who were chided for being so dumb as to pass up Bush for something as common as a defensive end.
There was no sense of perspective in those stories, no sense that you judge these things over years, not games. Not even any recollection of just how important a great pass-rushing end can be. Let’s be honest here – if you said I could start a franchise with either a young Reggie White or a young Emmitt Smith, I’m taking White because I can get somebody to carry the ball but I can’t get anyone who can rush the passer like Reggie.
And at the moment, Williams is proving to be a far better pick than Bush. He’s already set the Texans’ team record for sacks with 8.5 and the other week he beat the tar out of Vince Young, the other prize of the 2006 draft. Down in Houston, they’re gushing over the guy who was supposed to be the wrong pick.
Five years from now, if Williams keeps pushing himself, they’ll still be gushing, while the odds are probably no better than even that Bush will still be in the league at all.
