Spoken like someone that has never had to find his true worth in the world yet...That's real sporting of you to wish him harm, also. The good news for Bush is that if he gets this first deal done right, he'll never have to stand next to you flipping 2 dollar burgers for 6 bucks an hour.

Hey SD, I was just noticing back in the old Rumor Central threads that you made the call on Mario to the Texans very early there. Got to give you and your sources credit for that one.

I only said that, 'superdave', as that he would come to his senses and not be such a greedy person. Sure, he won't have to flip those burgers cuz he's making millions of dollars to not even play every down this season. He hasn't proven a thing yet, and I don't want him to get seriously hurt for an extended period of time. I just hope he sprains something, or maybe even less serious, to remind himself that it was a bad decision to miss the start of training camp just so he could get the money none of us will ever have. And he'll be making that in a year. There goes the hope of the Saints' faithful, for now. Such a classy move.

When I hear things like Reggie wanting #1 money and Vince wanting Alex Smith money, I know that neither will sign for a while.

The rookie salary structure is ridiculous. The number one guy gets like $20 million up plus yet the number 32 guy gets maybe one million. Rookies should never get paid like vets. If they could figure out something like baseball's structure (with less time until free agency) or basketball with the rookie cap, that would be swell.

I say this since the Titans cut Pacman a check for $11 million and will probably have to give Vince half that. Earn the money, boys.

Might as well merge this with the talk from back in May.

To read you calling a player out for trying to maximize his earning potential and wishing that he gets hurt (serious or not, doesn't matter) and then insinuating that he has no class is pretty ironic. Anyone who wishes ANY injury on anyone who makes a living from their body is the one making a classless statement, not the one trying to maximize his earing potential. I don't care how many millions we are talking about.

I think Bush needs to come back to reality, but I don't blame anyone from trying to maximize the almighty dollar and don't consider is a classless move. This is America, and in America we are free to make as much money as the free market will command. It's a gamble for him, and may not be the best thing for his carear, but it's his decision to make, and to call out his class for a business decision kinda rubs me the wrong way....

OK, end of rant.

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I agree. I said the same thing last year when Cedric Benson was holding out. I would rather see them do it now instead of waiting til they are a year or two into their contract and then holdout and dishonor a contract that they signed.

I think if I was an NFL owner, I wold probably be trading down in the draft and avoiding the top of the first round at all costs unless I felt extremely strong about a player. The money that gets handed out at the top of the draft in absolutely insane.

This is one area where I think the NBA got it right.

I wouldn't wish harm on Reggie Bush. But I also don't have to respect his decision making.

If I was a professional athlete drafted by the city of New Orleans right now, and I was getting offered 8 digits in garaunteed money to play for the team I wouldn't even think of holding out.

im not defending bush, but its not like he owes it to the city to go play for the league minimum and show them what a blue collar football player can do. reggie bush owes new orleans nothing. to his credit, reggie and his agent were up front with houston about the money they wanted. houston knew they couldnt give it to him and passed on him. the saints apparently thought he would change his mind. this one's on that team's shoddy management more than anything else if you ask me.

I thought it was more of a case that Houston wouldn't give him what he wanted. He was wanting the lottery basically. Don't remember everything, but I remember it being over 28 million up front

Oh come on. People need to stop taking things seriously. No respectable and sane human being could wish serious or minor bodily harm on anybody, whether through jealousy or for the purpose of making them see straight. As this case is the latter, all I mean is that I wish he could come to his senses and realize even the league minimum is a ridiculous improvement on what most people make.

Sheesh. Calm down.

from the Rumor mill.........

Saints | Bush contemplating not signing?
Fri, 21 Jul 2006 21:33:34 -0700
Jason Cole, of Yahoo Sports, reports there has been some talk of New Orleans Saints rookie RB Reggie Bush not signing in time for training camp. Now, a league source said Bush is toying with the idea of sitting out the entire season and going back in the NFL Draft in 2007 if he doesn't get his price. "No player has ever had the kind of leverage that Reggie Bush has right now," the source said. "The Saints made it clear what they were willing to do before and now we'll see if they're going to get there." Two sources said that talks between the Saints and agent Joel Segal have been nearly non-existent. Wednesday, July 19, Mike Ornstein, who is Bush's marketing agent, told the Clarion-Ledger of Jackson, Miss., that he didn't think Bush would be signed in time for camp. Ornstein is not allowed to negotiate contracts, but he is acutely aware of all of Bush's business matters. Bush supposedly has more than $5 million in the bank from multiple endorsement deals Ornstein has negotiated since Bush left the University of Southern California. Bush could probably sit out 2006 and still be a high pick next year.

Bush is so good he can now sit out a year to get the money he wants. What a piece of crap.

Curious to see what people think about this one. Especially those taking him #1 in rookie drafts, or in the 2nd/3rd round of redraft leagues.

Well let's see, a year off, not in football condition for next year (notice i said football condition). His accomplishments are then one year forgotten. He falls in draft position, less money..Im thinking hes getting some bad advice somewhere. I personally just straight out dislike this kid more and more. Im not naive here and I know hes no different then any other athelete who is just trying to get his but Im think we (society) needs to stop creating bitchy millionaires straight outta college. Someone else said it first but there should be a freshman cap and salary scale for years in the league.

This is simply positioning, he's not going to sit out a year. It will be a messy hold out, but he won't sit out.

but its enough positioning to mess up his time in training camp with a new team that needs to gel with a new QB and head coach, and its going to remove almost any potential fantasy value he could have had imo.

He is not being offered the league minimum. He wants to get the payday he thinks he deserves for being what should have been the #1 pick.

Reggie "Leon" Bush is all about him. I wondered the whole time about the "He's definitely coming to Houston" talk because publically, all he was saying was playing in the NFL and being the #1 pick is a dream for me. He never went out of his way to even pretend like he was excited to play for Houston, which is the sort of thing you do if you think they are going to be your employer. (Compare this with the excitement he showed at the prospect of playing for the Jets and the marketing dollars associated with NYC).

Leon is all about Leon. Being #5. Getting endorsements. If even 1/1000th of the agent/house stuff is true, he shows the type of team player he is by endangering USC's titles.

Ultimately, he didn't take Houston at its word--that they were going to evaluate all the players evailable, listen to trade options, and chose the best player for the team. He just thought the hype was going to take care of him. That the Texans would take him, or that someone would offer enough to trade up.

Kubiak is all about team and not about hype. Typically, Denver's teams, are very team focused and not individual focused. They have typically taken defense high in the draft, and offense lower, though they tend to keep a large percentage of those lower offensive picks (picks that can work in the Denver offense, but not necessarily in others). One of Kubiak's favorite players is Rod Smith, someone who was undrafted but did everything that was asked of him.

Ultimately, if he holds out, it's not good for anyone. It would be a shame if his promising college career gets derailed on the way to the NFL because of an ill-advised holdout of any duration. In the long run, he is the type of player who can make zillions of dollars if he stays likeable and can play like he did in college. Squeezing more money, in the face of all the endorsement dollars he already has, can't play too well in a city that has gone through all that junk. (Wooweee, we sold out the stadium but Savior Reggie won't play unless he gets paid like the first pick. Yeah, there will be lots of sympathy for that).

His representation has been crap.

He needs to ask Mike Williams what a year out of football can do to you.