than his counterpart Deuce McAllister, putting off any speculation that he would immediately supplant McAllister as the starter in New Orleans. The Saints won the game by a score of 19–14. In his team's Week 9 contest against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Bush finished the game with minus-5 yards on eleven carries despite the Saints' 31–14 victory. This effort lowered his league-worst rushing average among running backs to only 2.55 yards per carry. However, he finished the midway point of the season with 46 receptions, the most by any running back in the league. At the midway point of the season, Bush had yet to score a touchdown either receiving or running the ball; however, on November 12, 2006, Bush rushed for his first touchdown from scrimmage on a reverse against the Pittsburgh Steelers. On December 3, Bush tied the Saints' single-game touchdown record, held by Joe Horn, by scoring four touchdowns against the San Francisco 49ers. He gained 168 all-purpose yards as he sparked the Saints to their eighth win of the season. On December 10, Bush scored a 62-yard touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys in Dallas, contributing to the Saints' 42–17 drubbing of the Cowboys in what was expected to be a more competitive matchup that would be important to the playoff race. On December 24, Bush scored a one-yard touchdown on a reverse against the New York Giants. Bush also had a career-high 126 rushing yards on the day. On December 31, Bush scored a one-yard touchdown against the Carolina Panthers but carried the ball only three times, even though backfield counterpart Deuce McAllister did not play. This was because the New Orleans Saints had already clinched the No. 2 NFC seed in the playoffs. In the NFC Divisional Playoff game on January 13, 2007, Bush ran for 52 yards on twelve carries and scored a touchdown, and added three catches for 22 yards, as New Orleans edged the Philadelphia Eagles 27–24 to earn its first NFC Championship Game appearance in the team's 40-year history. The game was also notable for the vicious hit that Bush absorbed from Sheldon Brown while attempting to catch a swing pass on the Saints' first play of the game. On January 21, in the NFC Championship playoff game, Bush caught a pass on the 22 and ran 78 yards downfield (eluding the Chicago Bears safety) for an 88-yard touchdown thrown by