bush got top dollar new orleans is  a better franchise than houston at this point in time where was this article? THE TOTAL COST OF NOT BEING NO. 1 Now that Saints running back Reggie Bush has signed a contract, it's time to take a look-see at the total consequences of the events that resulted in Bush not being the first overall pick in the draft. For present purposes, how he ended up at No. 2 isn't relevant. Some league insiders believe that it was a combination of factors. As we've previously reported, the Texans were turned off by the perception that Bush wasn't being honest with them regarding the news that broke less than a week before the draft as to the potential involvement of Bush's family with a San Diego sports agency that wanted to represent him. (It likewise didn't help that, as we've previously heard, Bush dragged his feet in returning calls from the Texans regarding the situation.) But there's also a sense that, if agent Joel Segal had been willing to do a deal, the Texans still might have pulled the trigger, and that the inability to sign Bush served as confirmation of the concerns that the team developed based on the alleged free rent and alleged cash payments received by Bush and/or his family while he was still eligible to play college football. So Bush doesn't get picked by the Texans, a franchise playing in a state with no income tax. Instead, he's drafted by the Saints, where the total state and local taxes will chew up a whopping NINE PERCENT of his gross income. The impact? On the surface, Bush got $300,000 less in guaranteed money than No. 1 pick Mario Williams. After factoring in the state and local taxes, the difference is more like $2.658 million. $2.658 million! And if the base package is $51 million over six years, the difference between the Williams deal and the Bush deal isn't $3 million. It's $7.59 million. Because Tennessee likewise doesn't have an income tax on salary or wages, Bush's in-pocket money also is less than that received by Titans quarterback Vince Young, the No. 3 overall pick. Young gets $25.74 million in guaranteed money. After state and local taxes, Bush comes out $1.898 million behind Young on that aspect of the deal.