2008 brought a renewed enthusiasm over the prospects of Steven Jackson for fantasy owners. Just a year after being elevated to the number two hole in most fantasy drafts, this coming off a stellar 2006 season, Jackson’s injury marred ‘07 was seen as more of an aberration and people were counting on the talented tailback to bounce back.
So the fifth running back taken in most people’s 2008 fantasy draft was No. 36. But unfortunately for those owners, for a second year in a row, the back failed to escape the injury bug and missed four out the first 14 weeks, which constitutes a good deal of the regular fantasy season.
2008 recap
The season started out very poorly for both Jackson and the Rams. They lost their first two games to the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants by a total of 79-16. So there wasn’t a lot of opportunities for the back to get his yards and TDs.
But better days were on the horizon. From week 4 through week 6, Jackson managed two 100-yard games and four TDs, three of them coming in the upset of the Cowboys at home. In that game , No. 39 managed 160 yards and 3TDs. So for many, they felt that Jackson was finally getting back on track and would be a major contributor to their fantasy team from then on out.
But that feeling was short lived. He only managed seven carries from Week 8 through Week 14 as he battled nagging injuries and by the time he came back, it was already too late for most owners. Week 15 was already a playoff round so his strong finish – in the last two weeks of the season – was all for naught.
He still managed to reach the 1,000 yard mark with 8 total TDs for the season, but it was a far cry of what could’ve been had he been able to stay healthy for all 16 games.
2009 Outlook
Jackson will once again be a top pick in the draft, although the potential for injury will scare many from taking him in the top five. At 6′2″ 235, he has the size, speed, moves and production that warrant being a number one back.
And if he can somehow evade the injury bug, he could be in line for a big year. First year coach Steve Spagnuolo, a defensive minded coach by nature, understands the importance of a strong running game and will look to upgrade the offensive line position through free agency and the draft. And sitting at the number two slot in the NFL Draft, one of those big offensive tackles could be just what the doctor ordered.
QB Marc Bulger is still efficient enough to keep defenses balanced through the air, so we expect Jackson to return to his 2006 form (over 2,300 yards from scrimmage and 16 TDs) and come close to reaching 2,000 total yards from the line of scrimmage with double digit TDs.
And this is why we see him going anywhere from picks number five through nine.
