Reggie Bush - Does becoming the main guy help or hurt him? (1 Viewer)

[FunkyPlutos]

I was just thinking about how Reggie Bush being the main guy will help him out fantasy wise and then was wondering if being the main man doesn't actually hurt him for two basic reasons:

1. He's never carried the load before.

2. Teams can game plan for just him, instead of a "Thunder & Lightning" type offense.

Am I way off base in thinking this could actually hurt his numbers?

 

[Vicktimized]

It should hurt the Saints overall...but it won't hurt his 07' numbers for sure, as bad as they have been.

This might salvage a useable season for Bush if the guy can run for a decent clip. He catches so well and will have no comp at the goal, so he'll be a decent RB3 if nothing else, with a lot of upside if the Saints can figure out a fix.

 

[CalBear]

I was just thinking about how Reggie Bush being the main guy will help him out fantasy wise and then was wondering if being the main man doesn't actually hurt him for two basic reasons:1. He's never carried the load before.2. Teams can game plan for just him, instead of a "Thunder & Lightning" type offense.Am I way off base in thinking this could actually hurt his numbers?

Did Ron Dayne getting benched/leaving hurt Tiki Barber's numbers?

 

[EBF]

I think it can only help him. He's the man now. He'll get the ball a ton and get every opportunity to make plays.

 

[valhallan]

I think the "thunder & lightning" approach is a big contributor to the Saints' struggles. Payton has not adjusted his packages from last year and now defenses are sniffing them out right away. The loss of Deuce should force Payton to re-evaluate his playbook finally and perhaps put Bush in more standards sets where he can get the chance to improve his running skills. I think he's talented enough to handle the load and just needs to get a consistent 15-20 carries per game so he can find a groove (like most runners).

 

[nyftbl_giants]

dont think anyone can say for sure....but i cant wat to find out

 

[FunkyPlutos]

Did Ron Dayne getting benched/leaving hurt Tiki Barber's numbers?

My bad, I always get Dayne and Deuce mixed up.

 

[Pocket Joker]

I think it actually hurts him, as he isn't a feature "type" back.

He reminds me more of a Warrick Dunn type (although Dunn did eventually make the feature jump). Except, he doesn't seem to like to get hit (too pretty for that). I don't think he has what it takes to be an every down back (dances too much - doesn't hit the hole with authority or "run tough").

Although, you will EASILY find people on this message board that are Bush-lovers....

 

[PACKER 7]

It should hurt the Saints overall...but it won't hurt his 07' numbers for sure, as bad as they have been.This might salvage a useable season for Bush if the guy can run for a decent clip. He catches so well and will have no comp at the goal, so he'll be a decent RB3 if nothing else, with a lot of upside if the Saints can figure out a fix.

As "poor" as his performance has been to date. He's still performing at the RB2 level in PPR leagues. So I'd say this injury is a very significant bump to his numbers. If he can do this poorly and still be top 20, imo top 5 is not out of the realm of possibility in PPR leagues. Maybe top 10 in non-ppr leagues.

 

[FreeBaGeL]

There's really no way this can hurt him. That gimmick Saints offense is done. It was great while it lasted but it has been figured out. It doesn't work. All those little gimmick plays have 4 guys beating the Saints to the spot of the ball.

I have said from day 1 that Bush would be better off just playing as a prototypical RB. Whether or not the Saints try and do that or whether they just plug Stecker in for Deuce and continue on with this broken offense remains to be seen.

There's really no stake in saying Bush isn't the "type" of feature back at this point. He got a lot of work at USC as they used their RBs enough to give two guys a full load. His touches (I know I know, all touches are not the same but he actually did most of it rushing) at USC were about 2 below even seemingly workhorse NFL backs. NFL defenders hit harder, I know. Nonetheless, the guy has virtually no injury history through college and 22 NFL games which is pretty good.

He danced a lot because he felt like he had to break a big one on his limited number of carries in New Orleans. Knowing he'll get the ball more will give him a chance to only try and break one when it's there rather than to force it. When told to hit the hole hard he has hit it very hard, and is one of the quickest runners through the hole when it is there. I remember a few times last year where he would just get in there so fast and the play would end so fast it seemed like a modest gain and it ended up being 8 or 9 yards. The problem is the Saints line is awful at run blocking and he won't have many of those holes and when they're not there he does try and dance too much rather than just taking a 1 yard gain or no gain. That is something than can be corrected pretty easily though. His vision hasn't looked superb but Payton said on ESPN radio today that it is, so we'll have to see whether that's true or not.