I heard what Michael Lombardi said and it was hogwash. So, Reggie's not going to take a paycut with the Saints but he's going to be willing, as Lombardi and La Canfora suggested, to take $4-5 million in salary? That doesn't make much sense, unless we also conclude that Reggie hates being in New Orleans such that he would force the team's hand in order to be release. That's not the case as Reggie loves New Orleans and being on the team.
The Saints cannot trade Bush because the team that trades for him would have to take on not only his new salary but the cap hit associated with it.
If the Saints cut him outright, they are still on the hook for $3.5 million in cap charges due to Bush's prorated bonus. If Bush is to settle around $4-5 million, then a renegotiated deal that pays Bush, say, $4.5 million would only truly be $1 more than what the Saints would have to pay anyway. If Bush is only going to cost you an additional million, then it is better to keep him than to release him. There's not a FA/UDFA available that can 1.) give you what Bush gives you and 2.) has a familiarity/understanding with the intricacies of Sean Payton's offense such that he could replace Bush in such short order.
I have always found the debate on the Saints keeping Bush a bit ridiculous. This is not to foreclose the possibility of Bush leaving. But I think too many in the media are treating the Saints retaining Bush as an impossible situation. But when you take into account that Bush will count $3.5 million against our cap no matter what we do, and that his expected value is expected to fall somewhere between $4-5 (I would say the ceiling might actually be $5.5), then it not an arduous task to retain his services. In the end, I think he will be here and I believe he might already be back in town.