The Lions didn’t need receiver Calvin Johnson or running back Reggie Bush to beat the Vikings in Minnesota. The Lions may not need either of them to beat the Saints in Detroit. But they’ll definitely have one of them.
Bush said Sunday he’ll definitely return for the Week Seven reunion with New Orleans.
“Oh yeah, 100%,” Bush said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “Next week for sure.”
Per a league source, Bush was kept out of Sunday’s game largely as a precaution. He could have played if necessary; the Lions decided that the smarter move was to let his injured ankle heal completely.
The Lions likely will need Bush on Sunday. Theo Riddick aggravated a hamstring injury on Sunday, which could keep him out of next week’s game.
The Saints made Bush the second overall pick in the 2006 draft. He quickly became a New Orleans icon and a marketing dynamo, earning millions of dollars and engendering plenty of loyalty in New Orleans.
A member of the Super Bowl XLIV championship team, Bush never became the guy that his draft status would have suggested, in large part because the Saints opted for a platoon at tailback. Bush has shown both in Miami and Detroit that he can carry the load, when called upon to do so.