Before the New Orleans Saints unexpectedly landed dynamic runner/receiver C.J. Spiller in free agency, they considered a reunion with Sean Payton's original dual threat weapon Reggie Bush.

Payton said he had dinner with Bush in Los Angeles after Bush was released by the Detroit Lions but wound up changing course when Spiller wasn’t immediately snatched up in free agency.

“I was out there [in Los Angeles], we were able to sit down and that was really prior to really the start of it all. It was really just, ‘Hey, this would be a good fit,’” Payton said of Bush during the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix on Wednesday. “With a player like that, it’s more about, ‘Do we have a vision of exactly how we’d use him?’ And I think we did. But a few days later, Spiller is taking a visit, so it just sorted out in a way that was a little unique. I think we expected Spiller to be somewhere else with a higher number. But it all worked out.”

Sean Payton is eager to get C.J. Spiller going in the New Orleans offense. Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

Payton continued to rave about Spiller, by the way, during his hour-long session with the media.

I’ve already written a few times about how intrigued both Spiller and the Saints are by his fit in Payton’s versatile offense that loves to exploit matchups. But I imagine it’s a subject I’ll continue to write about more this offseason after hearing the way Payton gushed over him (Fantasy Football Alert!).

“His cutup is unbelievable,” Payton said of breaking down Spiller’s film with the Buffalo Bills. “And I’m not talking about last season because I think it became challenging, but you go back a couple of years and start looking at his screen reel, a sweep reel, a return reel. So when you watch his film you think of a lot of things he can do.

“He’s physical. He’s the most explosive player on the field a lot of times when you’re watching him. And you know, he’s someone who’s been in the AFC, he’s not someone we see a lot of on film. So he’s an exciting player that clearly heading into free agency there wasn’t any thought about, and then after that first rush there was some interest. And I think to his agent’s credit, they looked at it from a ‘how he was going to be used’ standpoint, the system, the offense and wanting to be a part of it. And we feel the same way.”

When asked how Spiller compares to another former Saints dual threat, Darren Sproles, Payton said there are some similarities and differences.

“I think that Darren’s got this unique quickness that, 10 steps can take place in a second. Spiller can hit the edge and all of sudden go 80,” Payton said. “And you see a [passing game] route tree from Darren that’s pretty encompassing, and then from CJ you see X-number of routes [in how he was used in Buffalo]. So I’m anxious to see some of the things he can do in the passing game.

“I think [Spiller] is a little bit bigger. But they are both playmakers that are explosive, so there will be a lot of similarities that way. ... I would say the thing that’s most apparent, though, is I know how much Darren loves playing, and you can tell you get that feel from C.J. as well. I mean it’s everything to him. You can’t put a value on that enough. They really love playing, and that’s contagious.”