Eagles Concerned About Reggie Bush Matchup

The hoopla is all about rookie Reggie Bush, the New Orleans Saints running back out of Southern California who owns a Heisman Trophy and two national championship rings, and leads the NFL in receptions.

"All you have to do is watch the tape to see how good he is," Eagles special-teams coach John Harbaugh said.

What the Eagles saw on tape earlier this week was Reggie Bush returning a punt 65 yards for his first NFL touchdown, a late fourth-quarter play that allowed the 4-1 Saints to rally for a 24-21 victory against Tampa Bay on Sunday.

They also saw the running back's 11 catches for 63 yards against the Bucs, proving that Reggie Bush presents multiple problems as defensive coordinator Jim Johnson prepares the Eagles to face the Saints on Sunday at the Superdome.

"The biggest problem with Reggie is a matchup problem and making sure we don't have any mismatches," Johnson said. "The guy is such a special athlete. He's a lot like Brian Westbrook."

Reggie Bush is a lot like Westbrook, the Eagles' veteran running back who doesn't have a Heisman Trophy or a national championship ring. Westbrook, despite being the best double threat in the NFL right now, has not received as much national attention in his five seasons as Reggie Bush has in his first five weeks in the league.

"I think if people really look at the stats and the things that I've done since I've been in the league, they'll see the truth," said Westbrook, who was a third-round pick out of Villanova. "Like I said, I think Reggie is a very exciting player, but a lot of hype comes with a guy who is the second overall pick and the Heisman winner who went to USC.

"I didn't do any of those things in my college career, but in the NFL, I think we do a lot of similar things and if people take the time to look at the stats, they'll see that."

Actually the stats reveal that, at least right now, Westbrook does those things better. The Eagles will need him to be the most dangerous weapon on the field if they're going to beat the resurgent Saints.

Reggie Bush does lead the NFL in receptions (34), something no running back has accomplished over a full season since San Francisco's Roger Craig in 1985. But Reggie Bush is averaging 7.4 yards per catch, which is more than 3 yards fewer than Westbrook's 10.9 average this season. Westbrook has a career average of 9.8 yards per catch and has 16 career receiving touchdowns.

As far as being a running back, Reggie Bush isn't even the best one on his own team. That distinction belongs to Deuce McAllister, who is coming off his first 100-yard rushing performance of the season in the Saints' win over the Bucs. McAllister, a two-time Pro Bowler who has rushed for more than 1,000 yards three times in his career, gets the bulk of the carries for the Saints and is averaging 4.8 yards per rush this season.

Reggie Bush, on the other hand, has not run the ball all that effectively this season. He is averaging just 3.1 yards per carry and has been held under 3 yards per carry in three of his five games.

Though the Eagles don't run much, Westbrook almost always has run effectively in his career, as evidenced by his 4.6-yard per carry average. This season, Westbrook is averaging 5.3 yards per carry.

That said, Reggie Bush has added another dimension to the Saints' offense, and quarterback Drew Brees believes the Saints' thunder-and-lightning combination is making it difficult for opposing defenses.

"You see both of those guys in a game and you don't know who we are going to give it to," Brees said. "You spread them out, put them in motion, shift them around, and I think defenses have to have a plan for when those guys are in the game. We have other weapons, too."

That's true.

The Saints are loaded on offense.

Wide receiver Joe Horn is a four-time Pro Bowler, but Marques Colston, a rookie seventh-round draft choice from Hofstra, leads the Saints and all NFL rookies with 374 receiving yards.

"Colston was a good find, no question about it," Johnson said. "He's a big guy (6-foot-4, 231 pounds), and he's going to be a little bit of a problem with matchups. He's almost like a tight end playing out there as a split end."

Johnson also loves Brees.

"I think he's such a great competitor and leader," Johnson said. "He's managing the game and they're finding a way to win close ball games. He's not turning the ball over. As long as he was healthy, we knew he was the real deal."

All the hoopla might be focused on Reggie Bush, but Johnson and the Eagles' defense know they have a lot more to worry about than just the rookie getting most of the national attention.

New Orleans Saints News:
June News
•Bush Ready for Productive 3rd Season

April News
•Saints Want Bush to Emulate Westbrook

March News
•Reggie Bush Vows to Focus on Football

February News
•Bush teams with Shaq to host All-Star charity event
•Dog thinks 2 $900 Super Bowl tickets tasty treat
•Boonton man scores big with Super Bowl tickets
•Dog thinks 2 $900 Super Bowl tickets tasty treat

Super Bowl Weekend
•OK!'s Guide to the Super Bowl Parties
•"Hannah" primed to claim Super Bowl weekend
•Paris Hilton, Ludacris party alongside 50 Cent at pre-game Super Bowl concert

January News:
•Reggie Bush to Give Deposition
•New Book Points a Finger at Reggie Bush
•Reggie Bush Engaged to Kim Kardashian?

December News:
•Eagles vs. Saints Preview 12/23/07
•Bush Hoping to Play Against Eagles 12/18/07
•Cardinals 24, Saints 31
•Bush Out For the Year 12/12/07
•Falcons 14, Saints 34 12/10/07
•Falcons vs. Saints Preview 12/10/07
•Buccaneers 27, Saints 23 12/02/07
•Buccaneers vs. Saints Preview 12/02/07

November News:
•Panthers 6, Saints 31 11/25/07
•The Dissapointment of Reggie Bush 11/21/07
•Texans 23 Saints 10 11/18/07
•Jaguars Saints Preview 11/04/07

October News:
• Falcons 16 Saints 22 10/21/07
• Preview: Atlanta Falcons vs New Orleans Saints
• Saints 28,Seahawks 17 10/14/07
• Preview: Saints Vs Seahawks 10/14/07

September News:
• Titans 31, Saints 14
• Duo Clash: Reggie Bush and Vince Young Meet Again
• Preview: Tennessee Titans at New Orleans Saints
• Bucs 31 Saints 14
• New Orleans 10, Indianapolis 41
• Preview: New Orleans at Indianapolis
• Saints have Super Bowl aspirations

August News:
• Saints Make Progress, Dominating at Times - 08/27/07
• Brees Strong as New Orleans Saints Blowout Chiefs - 08/24/07
• New Orleans Saints at Kansas City Chiefs - 08/23/07
• New Orleans Saints Ready for Cincinnati Bengals
• Saints Bid Farewell to Jackson
• Saints' Starters Set to Hit the Field Against Bengals
• New Orleans Saints - NFC South Preview
• New Orleans Saints Play Exhibition on Sunday
• 2007 New Orleans Saints Odds and Predictions
• Saints Already Eyeing Sunday Night Opener

July News:
• Second-Year Coach is Reason for Saints' Success
• These Saints May Have Answers
• New Orleans Saints Enter '07 in Strange Position — as Contenders
• Will '07 Saints be Super?
• 2007 NFL Preview: New Orleans Saints
• New Orleans Saints Predictions

June News:
• New Orleans Saints Ready for Training
• New Orleans Saints Almost Finished With OTA's
• New Orleans Saints' Brees Buries Past, Looks to Future
• New Orleans Saints Signs Two Local Players
• New Orleans Saints' Meachem Expected Back by Camp
• New Orleans Saints 2007 Preview

May News:
• New Orleans Saints Camp Shows Team Ready For NFL Tops

April News:
• JaMarcus Russell, Draft, New Orleans Saints
• New Orleans Saints 2007 - 2008 Schedule
• New Orleans Saints 2007 Draft Preview

Feb News:
• Saints Limp into Scouting Combine
• Saints Tag Grant as Franchise Player
• New Orleans Saints Re-Sign LB Scott Shanle
• Super Bowl XLI Champions - Indianapolis Colts
• As You Watch Super Bowl, Don't Forget New Orleans

Jan News:
• Super Bowl XLI Preview
• New Orleans Saints Eager to Build on a Winning NFL Season
• Bears Win Over Saints - NFC Champions
• Saints vs. Bears - Playoffs NFC Championship
• Philadelphia 24, New Orleans 27
• Eagles at Saints - Playoffs
• Saints' 2007 Opponents Set

Dec News:
• Saints 21, Panthers 31
• Saints vs. Panthers Preview
• Saints 30, Giants 7
• Saints vs. Giants Preview
• Saints Fall to Redskins, but March into Playoffs
• Redskins vs. Saints Preview
• New Orleans Saints 42, Dallas Cowboys 17
• More About New Orleans Saints vs. Dallas Cowboys
• New Orleans Saints vs. Dallas Cowboys Preview
• Reggie Bush’s 4 TD’s: New Orleans Saints 34, San Francisco 49ers 10

Nov News:
• New Orleans Saints vs. San Francisco 49ers Preview
• New Orleans Saints Playoff Contenders
• New Orleans Saints 31, Atlanta Falcons 13
• Saints vs. Atlanta Preview
• Cincinnati Bengals 31, New Orleans Saints 16
• Another Saints vs. Bengals Preview
• New Orleans Saints vs. Cincinnati Bengals Preview
• Pittsburgh 38, New Orleans 31
• Saints, Steelers, Headed in Opposite Directions
• New Orleans Saints at Pittsburgh Steelers Preview
• New Orleans Saints at Mid Season
• New Orleans 31,Tampa Bay 14

Oct News:
• Saints Vs Ravens - Saints Lose
• New Orleans Saints Report Card
• Just Like the City of New Orleans, Saints Bounce Back
• New Orleans Saints Story Almost Too Good To Be True
• Philadelphia Eagles Collapse to New Orleans Saints 27-24
• Eagles Vs Saints Preview
• New Orleans Saints 24 - Tampa Bay Buccaneers 21
• New Orleans Saints Ready for Tampa Bay Bucs
• Saints Again Show Spunk, but Run Out of Gas