26-year old Steven Jackson is one of the best players in the NFL.  He can run over you, around you or catch a pass out of the backfield and do damage.  Jackson played in 15 games (all starts) for the Rams last season in which he carried the ball 324 times for 1,416 yards (4.4 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  He also caught 51 passes for 322 yards (6.3 avg) last season.  Jackson put up those numbers against a lot of extra defensive players in the box as no one was scared of the Rams’ passing game.  That will likely be the case again in 2010 unless Sam Bradford starts and plays well.  Jackson has now played in 84 games (72 starts) in his six years with the Rams and he has carried the ball 1,548 times for 6,707 yards (4.3 ypc) with 41 TD runs.  He has also caught 281 passes for 2,287 yards (8.1 avg) with 7 TD grabs in his career.  Look for the Rams to ride Jackson hard again in 2010.

27-year old Kenneth Darby will be Jackson’s caddy in 2010.  Darby played in 16 games (1 start) for the Rams last season and he carried the ball 27 times for 152 yards (5.6 ypc).  He also caught 18 passes for 96 yards (5.3 avg) last season.  Darby has now played in 27 games (1 start) in his three years in the NFL and he has carried the ball 61 times for 301 yards (4.9 ypc).  He has also caught 39 passes for 295 yards (7.6 avg) in his career so far.  Darby is a decent backup RB with a lot of tread left on the tires.

24-year old Chris Ogbonnaya got some action for the Rams at the end of his rookie year.  He played in 2 games (0 starts) for the Rams last season and he carried the ball 11 times for 50 yards (4.5 ypc).  Ogbonnaya also caught 1 pass for 19 yards last season.  Look for him to get more work in 2010.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE RAMS RBs in 2010:  A