… is that anyone ever thought he was the second coming of Gale Sayers.
5 replies on “The Real Reggie Bush Travesty…”
Just remember, a player in college and a player in the pros are two different players and they should be viewed as two different players. Reggie Bush deserved the Heisman more than any player in a long time, he was dominant and despite everyone’s best efforts he was the best player in college football.
In the NFL he is not Gale Sayers, but then again, his career will soon be longer than Gale Sayers, and he has won a Super Bowl. Personally, I think Sayers is one of the more overblown player in NFL history…the tragedy is that great college players have to instantly be compared to great NFL players, just let the kids be great college players and then wait until they become NFL players to start drawing comparisons.
It is all just media hype in the end, but don’t discount the type of player Bush was in college, I can’t stand USC, but he was unstoppable. At least, until he played Texas, probably still the best professional team he has ever played.
Gale Sayers was arguably the best running back in football for about 5 years. I believe he’s a Pro HOF’er. Until his knee ended his career, his worts rushing year was better than the best that Bush has chalked up yet.
Was Sayers overrated? Possibly- but that only makes the case stronger for Bush being overrated.
I agree about the media- I remember John Clayton in particular gushing about him. But Bush didn’t do anything to quell comparisons between himself and Sayers. Based on interviews, it was pretty clear that he thought he was going to rip the league up. I had strong doubts at the time, as did you, and we were both right. He’s not fast enough, strong enough, big enough, durable enough to be a feature back in the NFL. He’s a Metcalf-Megget kind of scatback, period. He may have a 10+ year career, but only because of limited touches.
He was unstoppable in college though. I don’t particularly care too much about the Heisman anymore, so whether or not he did what he did has little bearing on my evaluation of him.
After being in this business for a few years, the true measure of a modern running back is durability. I think that almost any running back with decent skills and a good offensive line can achieve what Sayers did for two or three years. But then the pounding turns them to jelly and their careers are over. Look at Peterson now, declining rapidly, Jacobs career is basically over, Larry Johnson had two years of HOF numbers and now he is done, Willie Parker, too many more to name. Now we will watch Arian Foster and Jamaal Charles do the same things this year and put up big numbers. Sayers did it for five years and his durability came to an abrupt halt. I know he is the HOF, and I know everyone loves him, but I think when you look at it objectively, he is just a typical modern day running back, great for a few years and then out of the league.
Again, Bush is not a HOF running back and most likely never will be, but if he plays the position in the league for 10+ years, like a Kevin Faulk, and is productive and influential in the W/L column for his teams, I will hold his career in much higher regard than a flash in the pan back that is so typical these days because of the nature of the position and the brutality of the game.
Keep your eyes on Chris Johnson, he is another one that will start to break down in the next year or so and then he will be gone.
Well, arguably Sayers didn’t really have the best offensive line or team. But I can’t say that definitively, so I’m not sure where I’m going at this point…
I think you and I largely agree here, actually. It’s hugely impressive to think that a guy like Emmitt Smith rushed for, what 18000 yards and was hugely productive until all that was left was breaking the record. With the modern move towards platooning backs, my guess is that’s a record that will stand a long time. You’re may be right about guys like Johnson and Peterson. Only time can tell. A few years ago, I thought LT would challenge Smith’s record. Now, it’s pretty clear he’s living on borrowed time in the league. I’ll be surprised if he’s playing next year.
But going back to the OT, I still maintain that Bush was highly overrated when he became a pro, and isn’t near the talent of Sayers. Remember- they tried to make him a feature back as a rookie. He couldn’t do it. Period. Sayers at least managed it. I have yet to see an argument that would make me reassess.
I agree completely, Bush never lived up to his billing or any comparison, although I do not think he warrants being called a bust as a pro, he certainly is not the second coming of anything to write home about at this point.
My point on Sayers is I think to a large degree he fits the “biggest fish I ever caught” scenario or the “wine gets finer with age” description. I understand he was a big deal when he played and showed a lot of potential as one of the best ever. Well, so did Bo Jackson, he probably would have been the greatest ever, even better than Jim Brown and Emmitt combined(okay, maybe not THAT great) but he had it all cut short. His legacy is all based on potential that was never able to be realized. I think that Sayers got to realize some of his potential before he was cut short and the HOF rewarded him. But these days, as the HOF gets more crowded, it is going to be tougher for a guy that was only good for a handful of years to be regarded as one of the best ever. Sayers was lucky he played when he did, if he played today, a five year career would basically make him Brian Westbrook. I actually think there is a chance that Westbrook’s numbers were better than Sayers in a comparable window, I am not sure of that though. But again, broken down and on his way out of the league for the most part after about five years.
The judgement on greatness has been adjusted and I morphed your comment on Bush into a commentary on how to classify greatness at the RB position. Bush, at this stage is not great at the Pro level, but a little digging and comparison of Sayers to modern day may reveal that Sayers really wasn’t all that great either. But for a while, he was one of the best in the league, just like a bunch of guys have been and will be in the modern NFL.
No big deal, we are in agreement on the lot, like I said, I added an addendum to the discussion on you regarding Sayers and his true greatness, thats all.
5 replies on “The Real Reggie Bush Travesty…”
Just remember, a player in college and a player in the pros are two different players and they should be viewed as two different players. Reggie Bush deserved the Heisman more than any player in a long time, he was dominant and despite everyone’s best efforts he was the best player in college football.
In the NFL he is not Gale Sayers, but then again, his career will soon be longer than Gale Sayers, and he has won a Super Bowl. Personally, I think Sayers is one of the more overblown player in NFL history…the tragedy is that great college players have to instantly be compared to great NFL players, just let the kids be great college players and then wait until they become NFL players to start drawing comparisons.
It is all just media hype in the end, but don’t discount the type of player Bush was in college, I can’t stand USC, but he was unstoppable. At least, until he played Texas, probably still the best professional team he has ever played.
Gale Sayers was arguably the best running back in football for about 5 years. I believe he’s a Pro HOF’er. Until his knee ended his career, his worts rushing year was better than the best that Bush has chalked up yet.
Was Sayers overrated? Possibly- but that only makes the case stronger for Bush being overrated.
I agree about the media- I remember John Clayton in particular gushing about him. But Bush didn’t do anything to quell comparisons between himself and Sayers. Based on interviews, it was pretty clear that he thought he was going to rip the league up. I had strong doubts at the time, as did you, and we were both right. He’s not fast enough, strong enough, big enough, durable enough to be a feature back in the NFL. He’s a Metcalf-Megget kind of scatback, period. He may have a 10+ year career, but only because of limited touches.
He was unstoppable in college though. I don’t particularly care too much about the Heisman anymore, so whether or not he did what he did has little bearing on my evaluation of him.
After being in this business for a few years, the true measure of a modern running back is durability. I think that almost any running back with decent skills and a good offensive line can achieve what Sayers did for two or three years. But then the pounding turns them to jelly and their careers are over. Look at Peterson now, declining rapidly, Jacobs career is basically over, Larry Johnson had two years of HOF numbers and now he is done, Willie Parker, too many more to name. Now we will watch Arian Foster and Jamaal Charles do the same things this year and put up big numbers. Sayers did it for five years and his durability came to an abrupt halt. I know he is the HOF, and I know everyone loves him, but I think when you look at it objectively, he is just a typical modern day running back, great for a few years and then out of the league.
Again, Bush is not a HOF running back and most likely never will be, but if he plays the position in the league for 10+ years, like a Kevin Faulk, and is productive and influential in the W/L column for his teams, I will hold his career in much higher regard than a flash in the pan back that is so typical these days because of the nature of the position and the brutality of the game.
Keep your eyes on Chris Johnson, he is another one that will start to break down in the next year or so and then he will be gone.
Well, arguably Sayers didn’t really have the best offensive line or team. But I can’t say that definitively, so I’m not sure where I’m going at this point…
I think you and I largely agree here, actually. It’s hugely impressive to think that a guy like Emmitt Smith rushed for, what 18000 yards and was hugely productive until all that was left was breaking the record. With the modern move towards platooning backs, my guess is that’s a record that will stand a long time. You’re may be right about guys like Johnson and Peterson. Only time can tell. A few years ago, I thought LT would challenge Smith’s record. Now, it’s pretty clear he’s living on borrowed time in the league. I’ll be surprised if he’s playing next year.
But going back to the OT, I still maintain that Bush was highly overrated when he became a pro, and isn’t near the talent of Sayers. Remember- they tried to make him a feature back as a rookie. He couldn’t do it. Period. Sayers at least managed it. I have yet to see an argument that would make me reassess.
I agree completely, Bush never lived up to his billing or any comparison, although I do not think he warrants being called a bust as a pro, he certainly is not the second coming of anything to write home about at this point.
My point on Sayers is I think to a large degree he fits the “biggest fish I ever caught” scenario or the “wine gets finer with age” description. I understand he was a big deal when he played and showed a lot of potential as one of the best ever. Well, so did Bo Jackson, he probably would have been the greatest ever, even better than Jim Brown and Emmitt combined(okay, maybe not THAT great) but he had it all cut short. His legacy is all based on potential that was never able to be realized. I think that Sayers got to realize some of his potential before he was cut short and the HOF rewarded him. But these days, as the HOF gets more crowded, it is going to be tougher for a guy that was only good for a handful of years to be regarded as one of the best ever. Sayers was lucky he played when he did, if he played today, a five year career would basically make him Brian Westbrook. I actually think there is a chance that Westbrook’s numbers were better than Sayers in a comparable window, I am not sure of that though. But again, broken down and on his way out of the league for the most part after about five years.
The judgement on greatness has been adjusted and I morphed your comment on Bush into a commentary on how to classify greatness at the RB position. Bush, at this stage is not great at the Pro level, but a little digging and comparison of Sayers to modern day may reveal that Sayers really wasn’t all that great either. But for a while, he was one of the best in the league, just like a bunch of guys have been and will be in the modern NFL.
No big deal, we are in agreement on the lot, like I said, I added an addendum to the discussion on you regarding Sayers and his true greatness, thats all.