Miami Dolphins Need to Re-sign Reggie Bush

The 2012 season is in now in the third week and the Miami Dolphins and Reggie Bush have not had any talks about an extension or a new contract.  Bush is in the final year of his two year contract that he signed with the Phins just over a year ago.  He proved last year that he can be an every down back, he proved that he can run between the tackles and even that he can be a top back in this league and he has continued to prove himself so far this year.  So why is Miami not even in talks with Bush?

General Manager Jeff Ireland isn’t exactly a poster boy for great decisions on players and contracts, with players like WR Brandon Marshall being traded for two third round picks, or trading CB Vontae Davis for a second round pick and conditional sixth, or even signing OT Art Hicks to a one year, two million dollar contract.  So its no wonder that fans are getting a little worried about Bush’s contract which is up at the end of the season making him a Free Agent.  Of course there is the Franchise Tag but why bother when Miami is set to have about 20 million in cap space next season and roughly about 9 million this year?  Maybe it because of players like Buffalo Bills QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and DE Mario Williams that played amazing until they signed their contracts.  The week after Fitzpatrick signed he threw 3 picks and lost 8 out of 10 games.  Williams has been almost invisible on the field this year for the Bills. So is that what Miami is scared of happening?

Bush is easily the best player on the roster, with his incredible speed and explosiveness on the field and his leadership and work ethic off the field, he is one of the major driving forces on this team.  Nobody expected the season Bush had last season rushing for 1086 yards and another 296 yards in the air.  No one thought that he had the size or the toughness to run in between the tackles or be an every down back.  Miami even drafted Daniel Thomas last year and Lamar Miller this year to back up and even replace Bush in case he went down or didn’t work out.  Now Bush has ran for almost 300 yards in only 2 games and Thomas has barely played due to a concussion.  Miller had his turn last week and looked good enough to now be battling Thomas for the number 2 back. Miller still needs work and considering he has the same style as Bush it would be great to let him sit behind Bush for a few years and learn.

There really is no excuse for Miami to hold back a contract offer for Bush.  Hes playing the best ball of his career and only getting better, a team leader and fan favorite, and only 27 years old.  He still has plenty of gas left in the tank and has defenses planning for him every week and is great support for the running game.  He is a perfect crutch for Rookie QB Ryan Tannehill to lean on while he learns the game and gets used to the NFL.  Miami needs to start drawing up the paperwork for a nice big contract for Bush, some where in the area of Baltimore Ravens Ray Rice’s contract of $40 million in 5 years.  He has earned it and deserves it.  There is no excuse, rhyme or reason for not giving him at the very least an extension.  If Jeff Ireland manages to make a mess of this situation, not only will his job be in serious jeopardy but so will whats left of the Phins fan base, which has been dying slowly the last few years.