The news of Reggie Bush breaking his leg during Monday night’s win in San Francisco certainly puts a little damper on a 2-0 start to the season. But, if any team is capable of moving on successfully, it’s the New Orleans Saints.
On this team, the talented Bush is just one of many options quarterback Drew Brees has at his disposal. Still, Bush does fill an important role on this team and his loss will make some adjustments necessary.
Bush is known for his blazing speed and is very dangerous when given a little space. His touchdown reception on Monday night against 49ers Pro Bowl linebacker Patrick Willis was proof of that. He faked out one of the best linebackers in the league and made it look easy. Willis wreaked havoc against the rest of the Saints offense all night long.
The Saints simply don’t have another back who can do the things Reggie Bush can do. For all of the criticism that he’s not a “between the tackles” runner, his abilities in other areas are what make him such a valuable contributor to this team.
He’s been famously called the league’s “highest paid decoy”. But think about what that does for coach Sean Payton’s offensive scheme. Bush is often used as a decoy, but the opposing defense must account for him on every play. Leave him out in space just once and it could mean trouble. Bush takes attention away from guys like Devery Henderson, Marques Colston and Jeremy Shockey, freeing them up a little bit and allowing Drew Brees to find them down the field.
The decoy scheme won’t work nearly as well with Ladell Betts or Chris Ivory on the field. Not to take away from their talents, but Bush presents a unique set of problems for an opposing defense.
I have no doubt that the Saints’ offense will miss Reggie Bush. But I also feel like there is no team better equipped to handle such a loss. Payton and Brees still have plenty of weapons available. They’re just going to have to find some new ways to open things up for them.
One area where I don’t think that the Saints will miss Bush as much: punt returns. Reggie is certainly a threat in that area, but he’s often an all-or-nothing proposition back there. If you watched Monday night’s game you saw both ends of the spectrum. Receiver Lance Moore should fit into that role nicely.
The good news is that Bush should be back on the field this season. When he returns, he makes the Saints that much more of a threat in the NFC.
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