Reggie Bush…The Next Tony Mandarich?

by LastRow

Huh? Okay, let me be the first to say I didn’t say that…Rather, Mike Freeman CBSSports.com National Columnist did. Or would I go that far, but honestly this same exact thought was running through my mind fastest than those kids in Shaq’s Big Challenge as I watched the Anits suddenly reappear on Monday night. And who seemed to be marching to the same beat of drum as they have also been…The one of losers! Drew Brees is the southern version of Wrecks Grossman, (well, at least through the first three games) Sean Payton looks like a one hit wonder and Reggie Bush may very well be the most overrated, overhyped player who has been drafted since Mandarich!

How do the Texans look now? Every week that goes by Reggie Bush is no different than any other running back in the league. And I’ll even go a step further and say he’s is not a true running back either! Of course that’s no secret! In order for him to operate to his full potential he needs to be in space, perhaps NASA would be better suited to meet his needs then a NFL backfield? That’s the only way he puts his goods and services to use. Last time I checked, that’s not what beginning a NFL running back is all about! It’s not about having "a Reggie Bush spin button" like we always hear. Seriously what has this cat done to still warrant all the glitz and glamour? Um, not a damn thing…Everybody and their mommas are still holding on to what he did at USC! Yeah, well guess what…Tony Mandarich was a hell of a college player as well! Winning several awards and earning many honors just as Bush did…And pulling the wool over the eyes of many in the process!

I suppose somebody’s going to tell me, (or at least try to anyway) that Reggie hasn’t had enough time in the league to get adjusted to it. Well, if he was in fact the greatest thing since sliced bread…Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the bread is starting to grow mold! The one position in the NFL that’s the easiest transition to make from college on the offensive side of the ball is at the running back position. Adrian Peterson has seemed to be adjusting just fine to it.

For the amount of Kool-Aid everybody has slurped over this guy ever since 2004, (while in LALA Land) well hasn’t it come time to piss all that out over the balcony? Because if you’re still drinking that shit, well you are indeed in LALA Land. Although I will say Reggie Bush now has his opportunity to shine all by himself as Deuce is lost for the year…Time to breakout and strut his skills. Oh wait a minute…Is that why he’s going to be spotted by Aaron Stecker? Yeah, Reggie Bush is so good that the Anits need to spell him with Stecker, right? Aaron Stecker is going to spilt carries with Bush…Exactly my point! Exactly my point! Although I guess the argument for that would be Stecker needs to because Bush has other duties in the offense. While that maybe true, the reason why he in fact does is because he can hack it as a full fledged running back. He’s so good he needs to return punts to right…Yeah, he’s the next coming of Deven Hester too, right? And why don’t the New York Jets have Thomas Jones return their punts too?

So the Saints spent the second overall pick on some glorified over publicized punt returner…Awesome! You know what both Reggie Bush and Notre Dame have in common? They’re both living in the past…Both reliving, (or trying to at least) their glory when their shit didn’t stink! Yeah, and I used to collect baseball cards, along with piss and shit my pants too…That doesn’t mean I still do!

Is Reggie Bush good? Well define good. Right now he’s just your average NFL running back, although I don’t consider myself in the category of "Jaws", or even Sean Salisbury…God, Salisbury reads this after he’s been sucking a little too hard on, well, you can finish that one! Driving his bandwagon…Um yeah, about that, you might want to get off! It’s looks like something you would see in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans! Hell, even "Jaws" said on Monday Night that Bush is extremely "overrated"!

Question is, is that "Tony Mandarich Overrated" or "Michael Vick Overrated"? Too early to tell…But Bush is headed in one of those directions!

To read Mike Freeman’s piece…

http://www.sportsline.com/columns/story/10373639

Vote in the latest Pick’em Poll which asks about them "Free Falling Goose Eggs?" This poll was inspired by Tom Petty and his collection of Heartbreakers. We can’t guarantee no hearts will be broken voting in this poll…However, it will be a lot more enjoyable then watching Wrecks Grossman try yet again to impersonate a starting quarterback in the NFL!

The BeastAAA-er

824 days ago

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#25	This user is an Reggie Bush fan.

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False ProphetAll-Star

824 days ago

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Template:Vince Young fan

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False ProphetAll-Star

824 days ago

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VY	This user is a Vince Young fan.

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LastRowAll-American

824 days ago

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So I'm guessing you see no correlation? Although let it be known "MADDEN" doesn't have a "Reggie Bush Button"

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Taytay 24All-American

823 days ago

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Anyone else see Vince's quote about letting go of the rivalry between him and Reggie? He basically said it isn't about the two of them, it is about their NFL teams. The Rose Bowl was two years ago and he has moved on.

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False ProphetAll-Star

824 days ago

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Here's something to think about. The one game that they lost in their run was the one game when LenDale White played his worst. Bush succeeded in College because the LBs weren't as fast as him, so he could get away with running outside of the tackles. Now, in the NFL, there are LBs that are almost as fast as him, so he can't run outside every play

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LastRowAll-American

824 days ago

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Aww...So the Texans knew exactly what they were doing! With not drafting Bush...Now Vince Young on the other hand? Well...

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False ProphetAll-Star

824 days ago

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I think that they wanted to build a defense, and build offense later. VY was an odd decision. I think that they weren't sold on him as an NFL QB. Turns out they were worng, but It was the safe mode

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ASwaffAll-American

823 days ago

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Yeah, that's what I thought was funny. People talked about how impossible it was to shut Reggie Bush down, and how NFL defenses would have to totally build their game plan around him. Really? Am I the only one that remembered him accounting for only one touchdown in the Rose Bowl against Texas? He might have averaged 6.3 yards per carry, but taking the ball 13 times for 82 yards isn't exactly what you're looking for in an NFL back. And they said the biggest thing he could contribute was as a receiving back. Well, he had 95 yards on 6 receptions. But, one of those receptions was a 35-yarder that ended in a turnover, and another was a meaningless 26-yarder that came with just seconds left in the game. You take away those two, and he had 34 yards receiving, for an average of 8.5 yards per reception. I laughed when people said there was no way to stop Reggie Bush. The Longhorns did it, so they should have known that NFL defenses would be able to.

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Oh No RomoDraft Pick

824 days ago

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How can Reggie Bush be a Tony Mandarich, Tony can't even do sommersaults.

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IbeargRed-Shirting

824 days ago

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can we at least wait till the end of the season to declare him the next tony mandarich. He didn't have an awful rookie year, so lets all just calm down a little bit.

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TheBatmanVarsity

824 days ago

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The Bush/Mandarich analogy is faulty, because Mandarich flamed out due to quitting steriods. But the concept of both being hugely touted flops is strong. Bush doesn't have to be a flop though. NO simply needs to accpet the fact that he's not a feature back, and Bush needs to quit dancing. I'm not sure either party sees the turth of this, though. Last year, NO used Bush effectively. This year it's like they forgot what worked last year. That has a lot to do with Bush's pathetic start and NO being 0-3.

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Tyrone BriggsHall of Famer

823 days ago

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Reggie Bush is a good kid with a great promising career ahead of him as a RB in the NFL. The Saints have played flat so far this season and that really is not his fault. This guy will prove to be the real deal soon enough.

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Taytay 24All-American

823 days ago

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Agreed. Everyone expected him to be the next Barry Sanders. Instead, he's going to "only" be a really good NFL back who is extremely versatile. He'll have a nice career when it is all said and done.

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ASwaffAll-American

823 days ago

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I don't know where you even get that he's going to be a "really good" running back. Last year, he averaged 3.6 yards per carry and scored 9 TDs (one of which was a kick return). This year, he's averaging 2.8 yards per carry, and has accounted for just 162 total yards (that includes 12 yards on two kick returns). AND he looked totally lost against the Titans when Deuce left the game.

LenDale White, by comparison, is averaging 3.6 yards per carry and has 180 rushing yards alone, WHILE splitting time with Brown. So, I don't really know the metric by which you're even calling Bush a really good back. So far, he's been the fourth or fifth best back taken in the 2006 draft. I would call his performance so far mediocre, at best.

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Taytay 24All-American

823 days ago

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I agree that going into the draft, I was much more impressed with LenDale White. As for Bush, right now he has performed like a below average back, particularly these first three games of this season. But when his career is done, I think he will be considered a very good back.

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DonatevoMajor Leaguer

823 days ago

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545 rush yards, 742 receiving yards, 8 TDs in 2006, is good, but not Heisman quality. In his defense, his team is sucking right now.

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