Reggie Bush vs. Mario Williams Revisited

Last year at this time, many of us were bemoaning the fact that the Houston Texans passed on dynamic running back Reggie Bush and local hero Vince Young for defensive end Mario Williams. And with Williams not becoming a huge presence on his team's defensive unit during his rookie season, while Bush and Young were finding relative success with their respective teams, it seemed Houston's front office had made a mistake. A big mistake.
But through two games of the 2007 season, it looks like maybe the jury is still out on that decision.
That's partially because Williams has awaken this year and is playing much more like a top overall draft pick should. Through two games he's recorded just six tackles, but has two sacks, a fumble recovery, and a touchdown. Now those aren't exactly eye-popping numbers, but the former North Carolina State defender is becoming more and more of a factor on defense all the time. Meanwhile, Bush has done little in New Orleans this season, along with the rest of the Saints offense. Williams, in fact, has more touchdowns at this point than Bush, who has yet to score. Bush has rushed for a total of 65 yards over the first two games -- with a pedestrian 3.0 yards-per-carry average -- and has fumbled twice. I know this all too well because he is on one of my fantasy football teams. And he's killing me!
Young has continued to look like a guy who could develop into a winner, and there are some fans who will never forgive the franchise for not taking him. He's certainly got the look of a leader, but he hasn't exactly posted fantastic numbers himself. Anyway, the Texans offset passing on him by trading for veteran backup Matt Schaub, who has looked sharp through two contests and has built some early chemistry with wideout Andre Johnson.
Should Bush and Young eventually develop into superstars, it's certainly possible that the Texans could still come out of this looking like fools. But that outcome doesn't look nearly as certain now as it did last year at this time.
From James Alder
Thursday September 20, 2007