FUTURE IS NOW

It was a balmy, sauna-like June afternoon when Reggie Bush, dripping with sweat, wobbled off the practice field. Beat down from two hours of running, catching and just baking in the sun, Bush was headed for the comfortable confines of the Saints' locker room. This is the time when Bush usually looks away from the gauntlet of reporters and darts into the players' sanctuary. But there is something different about Bush, the Saints' ultra-hyped Heisman Trophy-winning running back, who now is sporting a Mohawk. Besides the fact that he participated in the Saints' voluntary organized team activities, he appeared to be more comfortable with his surroundings. During his walk to the locker room, Bush playfully ribbed tight end Billy Miller, as Miller chatted with a local reporter. It was an encounter that caught veteran Saints observers off guard. For the first time since the Saints used the No. 2 pick in 2006 to draft Bush, he seemed like one of the fellas -- something his teammates have contended he has been for a while, but something many outsiders found hard to believe. "I've always been close to my teammates," said Bush, 24. "I've always been a team guy." His teammates agreed. "He comes in here and we laugh, and he gets made fun of like everybody else, and he makes fun of other people," defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis said as Bush walked by still laughing and joking inside the locker room. "I don't think he is outside of that circle at all. I don't think he tries to put himself outside of that circle. As long as I have known him he has been an open team player and a good guy." "He's hesitant," Miller said. "When you get a guy like that -- I'm sure he's in a situation where everybody wants something from him -- he's got to be a little careful who he opens up to and who he allows into his small circle." --- Too much, too soon --- For three seasons, all Saints fans wanted from Bush was to see him racing past defenders into the end zone, to watch him break records, to celebrate with him as he helped the team win a Super Bowl. That was asking a lot. But that's what fans were almost made to believe he was capable of bringing. When Bush arrived in 2006, he came with the kind of flash, hoopla and hype that left the former Southern Cal star with nowhere to go but down. From commercials to music videos, talk shows to magazine covers, to his high-profile relationship with reality TV star Kim Kardashian, Bush was everywhere. He was one of the NFL's marquee attractions before he played a down. He was easily the most high-profile athlete to land in New Orleans. He claimed to be completely comfortable with that role. But was he? "It was overwhelming for him," said Mike Ornstein, Bush's former marketing agent. "If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't have done that again. I think I put too much on his plate. "We had 28 national commercials. We were on 31 covers of magazines. At the end of the day, we created such a phenomenon that he could do nothing unless he had a 2,000-yard season and had 100 catches. He wasn't going to live up to it. "He had a hell of a first year, and still people look at it like he had a bad year. But because we built him into this plateau of being such a great player, we may have overdone it. "He made a ton of money off the field. I don't think it went to his head, though. But listen, when you have 28 national commercials, you're right up there with Michael Jordan." On the field, though, Bush hasn't reached such heights. In three seasons, Bush has rushed for 1,550 yards and 12 touchdowns. He has gained a less-than-stellar 3.7 yards per carry. Just when Bush appeared poised for a breakout campaign last season, he injured his left knee on the final play of the first half of the Saints' seventh game against Carolina and needed offseason surgery. After six games last season, Bush had rushed for 294 yards and two touchdowns, caught 41 passes with three going for touchdowns and had three punt returns for touchdowns. He was living up to the lofty expectations. "Those expectations were no higher than I expected out of myself," he said. "I don't think they were set too high for me. With the unfortunate couple of injuries, I haven't been able to perform to my best ability. But the good thing is I'm young, so I still have time." --- Finding his niche --- Bush is a bit "hesitant" on and off the field. But after three years of teasing fans with his tantalizing explosiveness, Bush is comfortable enough in his role with the offense that he may be ready to shut up all of his critics. That is, if he can stay healthy. "I think he's found his niche," Saints Coach Sean Payton said. "He's been really explosive for us as a returner and as a runner and a receiver. He has been a big part to us running the Football. I think I answered this as to his ability to stay healthy and to find that right amount of touches for him. "Prior to his injury last year, he was having a great year. Certainly I think we have a good role for him, and he feels very comfortable with what we're doing." Miller agreed. "We are doing some things now to allow him to run the ball the way Reggie likes to run the ball and doing some things that can make him the most productive player he can be on this team." Bush, who was limited in the offseason after knee surgery, has been fluid and crisp in training camp. He has lined up with the first team at running back, and he has returned punts. "I wouldn't say I'm 100 percent," Bush said. "I would say strength-wise 100 percent, health-wise at about 90-95 percent. Which is expected on the first real day back. I'm still staying on top of it like it was the first day being injured." He missed Saturday's afternoon practice as a precaution. --- Unique role --- In the Saints' offense, he won't be asked to carry the ball between the tackles 25 times per game. His job will not be to bully his way into the end zone against linebackers. What the 6-foot, 203-pounder can't do with power, he'll try to do with speed and grace, playing a multiple role of change-of-pace runner, pass catcher, decoy and return man. This doesn't mean that Bush can't run between the tackles. Bush said he's quite capable of running up the middle. "I can run the ball between the tackles," he said. "Anybody can run the ball between the tackles. I don't feel like that is going to make me or break me. I don't feel like running the ball between the tackles is going to win us the Super Bowl or help me win the MVP. "It's being versatile, being able to run the ball between the tackles, outside the tackles, returning punts, catching the ball out of the backfield and catching the ball down the field. That's what I do. That's who I am." With many teams in the NFL shifting to a two- or three-back system, Bush is the type of dynamic playmaker who can flourish. "The direction the NFL is headed toward you don't see those types of backs anymore," Bush said. "You see guys who are splitting time. You see guys who are able to play running back and multiple positions. The days of the one-running-back system are over. Teams can find guys who can play running back and be split out wide and play the receiver position, and do punt return and kick return. It gives them more versatility. That's where the NFL is headed." The time for Bush to showcase his full worth to the team could be now. He is in the fourth year of a six year, $62 million contract -- with $26.3 million guaranteed -- that he signed as a rookie. He is set to earn $8.58 million in salary, bonuses and likely incentives this season. That number jumps to $10 million in 2010 and $12.5 million in 2011. The Saints could part ways with Bush after this season for a manageable cap hit of $7 million in 2010 and $3.5 million in 2011. --- A recommitment --- The secret to a successful campaign isn't some magic potion, Bush said. It's simply staying healthy. Bush missed six games last season and four in 2007 with left knee ailments. He doesn't want more of the same. "I had to recommit myself and to really focus down to staying healthy and having a great offseason and get myself to 100 percent," Bush said. That's why after offseason surgery to repair torn cartilage, he rehabilitated in New Orleans for the second consecutive year, spending time with his teammates and trainers. "He wants this to be his breakout year," Ornstein said. "And he's doing everything he can. He's not a party guy. He doesn't go out. He takes care of his body. He gets a massage twice a week. He goes to a chiropractor once a week. He has a chef that cooks him healthy food. "It's not like he's going out having a great time. He's really focused on Football. And now instead of wanting to be in L.A., he wants to be in New Orleans. He wants to be around his teammates." More important, he wants to live up to the hype. He wants to earn Pro Bowl berths. He wants to win championships. He wants to show the world what he knows he is capable of doing. "There are goals that you set, and I want to be in the Pro Bowl," Bush said in June. "But injuries have kept me back from being able to perform to my best ability. When I'm healthy it's kind of apparent what I am able to do. But if you don't stay healthy the whole season, your chance of making the Pro Bowl is slim to none. "I know that it is in my future. I'll get there; it's just a matter of staying healthy." . . . . . . . Nakia Hogan can be reached at nhogan@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3405.