Oakland Raiders Free Agency: Michael Bush Is One Less Free Agent to Worry About

With the NFL league year to begin Tuesday, free agency is sure to be wild. The Raiders have some key players up for grabs, including Nnamdi Asomugha, Michael Huff and Zach Miller.

Miller was a restricted free agent under the former CBA, but now, under the new 10-year CBA, he is unrestricted after his four years of service.

Another key player on the Raiders' offense was set to become a free agent after four years in Oakland. That player is Michael Bush, who has been deemed a restricted free agent due to him missing his entire rookie year (2007) with a leg injury he suffered in college at Louisville. 

Bush has only been credited for three NFL seasons, so he will remain a restricted free agent, according to sources. The Raiders gave him a restricted free agent tender before the lockout began, so Bush is going to be a Raider in 2011. 

Bush was a part of Oakland's second-ranked rushing offense last season and he has filled in nicely when Darren McFadden goes down to injury, or just needs a playoff. 

Keeping Bush was a priority for the Raiders, but with all the other free agents on the roster, he could have slipped out of reach and gone elsewhere as an unrestricted free agent. 

This is great news for Oakland, and hopefully they can re-sign him next offseason to a long-term deal in what will hopefully be a much less complicated league year.