Steven Jackson Injury: Fantasy Football Owners Prepare for Life Without S-Jax

Steven Jackson’s fantasy owners are in for a long season.

Don’t feel left out, guys, I’m right there with you.

S-Jax strained his quad in St. Louis’ loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. He looked phenomenal out of the gate as he gashed the Eagles’ front seven for a 47-yard touchdown.

Unfortunately, he hurt the quad at the very end of the run and only carried the rock once more for nine yards.

He was already doubtful to play Monday night in New York against the Giants, but fantasy owners must prepare to be without their workhorse stud for much longer than that.

“C Jason Brown just seemed to accidentally leak that Stephen Jackson is out a month on WFAN,” according to MMA DieHards’ Joe Rizzo.

Every fantasy owner should have seen this coming, especially consider S-Jax’s history and nature of the injury.

A quad strain, like a hamstring injury, is one of the most fickle injuries possible. They are nearly impossible to gauge.

The only way for S-Jax to get healthy is to rest. He’ll risk further injury—possibly being sidelined for most of the year—if he plays or even tries to practice. Even when he thinks he might be healthy, he’ll still be prone to aggravating the injury.

S-Jax only missed one game the past two seasons and looked ready to shed his injury-prone label after entering camp in great shape.

It’s impossible to forget that this 28-year-old man has 1,880 NFL carries and 327 receptions under his belt. He also missed four games apiece in 2007 and 2008.

The only logical step in the healing process is to shut S-Jax down for at least one month.

Jackson’s speed has clearly diminished over the past few seasons. He relies more on his upper and lower strength to push the pile and toss defenders around. If he doesn’t have the necessary strength in his legs, he won’t be able to gain those tough yards, pick up the blitz or perform up to his standards.

At this point, Cadillac Williams is a better option for the Rams than a powerless S-Jax.

Williams was an exceptional fill in with 91 yards on 19 carries and 49 yards on five receptions. He is a must-add for any fantasy owner if he’s available on your waiver wire. He’ll receive a feature-back workload just like Jackson would have. Jerious Norwood will spell him, but not nearly enough to warrant a committee or pick up just yet.

We have to keep in mind that Williams has an injury history of his own, but he’s proven to be healthy the past couple of seasons.

He ran well in Tampa Bay last year and feels great following his short-notice heavy workload in Week 1. He has an extra day to rest and will square off against an injury-ridden Giants defense.

Tim Hightower impressed against the Giants Week 1 with 72 yards and a score on 25 carries and also added 25 yards on three receptions. Expect similar numbers from Williams despite the expected return of DE Justin Tuck.

For fantasy owners who are looking for other potential running back adds this week in case Caddy is off the market, be sure to check out these guys.

Ben Tate was awesome against the Indianapolis Colts. That is the man Houston has been waiting for to get on the field. He gashed the Colts for 116 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries. He was already the top add considering Arian Foster is still dealing with a hamstring injury. Derrick Ward is also a must-have option.

C.J. Spiller finally showed up to play after a terrible rookie season. He should be rostered already, but just in case, he’ll see some running room against Oakland.  He scored in Week 1.

Darren Sproles was fantastic against the Packers. He is better suited for this offense than Reggie Bush was because he is just as good of a receiver out of the backfield, but is better in pass protection.

He is part of a three-headed monster, but he is a far superior third-down back than Mark Ingram and Pierre Thomas. He scored on a punt return and added seven receptions for 75 yards. He’s a dark horse candidate to be in the top-five among receiving running backs.

Earnest Graham is the Buccaneers’ third-down back. He carried the rock six times for 13 yards while LeGarrette Blount carried it five times for 15 yards. Graham caught the ball eight times for 58 yards.

He is utilized in similar fashion to San Diego’s Mike Tolbert who gashed the Vikings for 35 yards and a score on 12 carries and nine receptions for 58 yards and two scores. Graham could score Week 2 against Minnesota.

LaDainian Tomlinson will continue to see third-down work in New York. If you’re in a point-per-reception league, he’ll be a viable flex option against Jacksonville.

It’ll be tough for Jackson owners the rest of the month. He looked awesome and was drafted to be a workhorse after seemingly shedding his injury-prone label the past two years.

Still, expect him to come back for the stretch run of the season when it matters most.

You never want to see your stud go down, but he didn’t have great matchups to begin the season.

St. Louis hosts Baltimore Week 3, Washington Week 4 and then has a bye. This will give S-Jax plenty of time to rest and even if he’s forced to miss the next two games, the Rams travel to Green Bay and Dallas in consecutive weeks.

Those are all difficult matchups. S-Jax could sit those games and then come back 100 percent to dominate as the Rams have a very favorable matchups in the second half of the season.

Look at who Jackson will be able to feast on when you need him most:

8 | Oct. 30	vs. New Orleans Saints
9 | Nov. 6	at Arizona Cardinals
10 | Nov. 13	at Cleveland Browns
11 | Nov. 20	vs. Seattle Seahawks
12 | Nov. 27	vs. Arizona Cardinals
13 | Dec. 4	at San Francisco 49ers
14 | Dec. 12	at Seattle Seahawks
15 | Dec. 18	vs. Cincinnati Bengals
16 | Dec. 24	at Pittsburgh Steelers
17 | Jan. 1	vs. San Francisco 49ers
Week | Date	Opponent

Aside from difficult fantasy playoff matchups, S-Jax can carry your team from Weeks 8-14. Every single one of those are tailor-made for Jackson to erupt. It's not impossible for him to finish as a top-25 fantasy RB by the end of the season.

Whatever you do, S-Jax owners, do not panic. Trust me, there is still a ton of fantasy football to be played.