By Bill Coats
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Monday, Sep. 24 2007
TAMPA, FLA. — There was no sideline tirade this week by
Steven Jackson. Chances
are, he was too weary to raise a ruckus.
A week after noisily venting his frustration near the close of a one-point loss
to San Francisco — and later apologizing to his teammates — Jackson was
unleashed Sunday against Tampa Bay.
Jackson carried 30 times for 115 yards and caught four passes for 18 yards. But
in the end, little changed for the woebegone Rams. Again, their offense fizzled
with the end zone in sight, and they limped home toting a punchless 24-3 loss
and a feckless 0-3 record.
"(Jackson) ran hard," quarterback
Marc Bulger said. "The first half he was
getting a ton of touches, and that was good to see, because as the game goes on
he gets stronger. It was working. Unfortunately, we still couldn't put it in
the end zone."
Jackson led the NFL in yards from scrimmage in 2006, averaging 145.9 per game
rushing and receiving.
But in the first two games this year, he'd produced a meager 157 yards total;
that ranked 38th in the league. He was shackled partly because the coaches
called twice as many pass plays as runs.
It was different vs. the Bucs: Of 61 Rams plays, 34 — or 55 percent — were
runs.
"That was a huge emphasis," center Brett Romberg said. "Steven Jackson is one
of the prime backs in this league, and to have him have nowhere near what he
wanted to have, it's pretty embarrassing on our part."
Said Jackson: "We kind of figured we were going to be able to pound the ball on
them, go up and down the field. And in the red zone, we wanted to be able to
execute. That's where we came up short."
The Rams ventured inside the Bucs' 20-yard line twice. The first trip ended
with an interception in the end zone; the second resulted in a field goal. For
the season, the Rams have produced just two touchdowns in eight red-zone tries.
What's the problem? "I don't know, but it's not from lack of trying," Bulger
said. "We're trying as hard as we can, but ... trying only gets you so far.
Maybe in high school or grade school it works. But in the NFL, it's about
productivity, and we're not getting it done."
Nobody in the dreary visitors' locker room, however, was questioning Jackson's
effort. "He's really a delight to block for, because he'll make the most out of
everything," said tackle Adam Goldberg. "It's nice to have No. 39 behind you."
Even nicer would be to put a few touchdowns on the scoreboard.
"You've just got to show your character now," Jackson said. "If you're a leader
you're going to lead, and if you're a follower you're going to follow. While
I'm on this team, I'm going to make sure no one quits. We're going to fight."
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