Having cut ties with the Miami Dolphins this offseason, Reggie Bush is on to the third team in his seven-year career; the Detroit Lions. Bush is the highest running back drafted since 2006, when he was picked No. 2 overall by the New Orleans Saints, but his career never took off as many believed it would, due mostly to extreme misuse by the Saints. Now that Bush is part of the pass-happy Lions’ offense, he’s poised for a big season. Let’s take a look at his fantasy value for this season and the future.
2012 Stats | Att | Yds | TD's | Rec | Yds | TD's | RB Rank | PPG |
| 227 | 986 | 6 | 35 | 292 | 2 | 14th | 10.86 |
2013 Outlook
As you can see, Bush put up solid numbers last season with Miami, good enough to finish the season as the 14th ranked running back in standard leagues and 15th best in PPR leagues. That made him a top-tier RB2 or FLEX option. The Dolphins figured out how to utilize Bush effectively in his two-year tenure, racking up 2,072 rushing yards, 588 receiving yards and 15 total touchdowns.
The Lions are a pass-first team, which plays right into Bush’s wheelhouse. The plan is to get bush 15-20 carries per game, as well as 6-10 targets in the passing game. Last season Joique Bell had 52 receptions for 485 yards. Bush will take over that role and is a much better player overall. By season’s end, he could be the Lions No. 2 receiver behind Calvin Johnson.
Dynasty Outlook
Bush is going to be a high-end RB2 option once again this season, and could even push into fringe RB1 territory, especially in PPR leagues. He’s also only 28 years old, and will be a fixture of the offense in Detroit for the foreseeable future, so there’s no reason to pass him up in your startup draft. Bush has a solid 4-5 years, at least, of production left.
2013 Stat Projections: 1,050 rushing yards, six rushing touchdowns, 50 receptions, 525 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns.