Steven Jackson Injury: Fantasy Recommendations for St Louis Rams RB

Jay Glazer reports that St. Louis Rams running back Steven Jackson, who missed last week's loss to the New York Giants with a quadriceps injury, will return to the lineup when the Rams face the Baltimore Ravens today.

Although Jackson is a gamer who has played through numerous injuries throughout his eight year career, his return to action may have been accelerated somewhat by the hamstring injury suffered last week by backup running back Cadillac Williams, who is listed as questionable on the injury report, but expected to play.

However, unless you are absolutely desperate for a fantasy running back play for Week 3 there are a couple of very good reasons to leave Jackson glued firmly to your bench.

First, the Rams face a formidable Ravens defense today that is fourth in the National Football League through two games against the run, allowing a paltry 70 yards per game on the ground, so there's not apt to be a whole lot of daylight available for Rams running backs today.

Second, there's no telling how the carries will be divided between the two dinged up Rams running backs, so Jackson could see anywhere from a handful of touches to a full compliment of snaps. Also, at any time he could easily re-aggravate the injury, so it's nearly impossible to gauge what sorts of opportunities for fantasy production Jackson could have in a very undesirable matchup.

If you literally have no other options then roll out Steven Jackson and pray he has a so-so fantasy day, but if you have any sort of viable alternative at running back the St. Louis ground game is best avoided altogether this week.