Leveraging the strength and knowledge of the SBNation, Fake Teams has paired with the individual blogger for each NFL team to bring you the edge you need to dominate your fantasy football leagues. Each will bring their team's top fantasy player along with a fantasy sleeper.
VamRam from Turf Show Times kicks off the fantasy coverage of the NFC West with fantasy football tips for the St. Louis Rams.
St. Louis Rams Best Fantasy Player:
This is easy: running back Steven Jackson. Jackson's back, and he's going to produce in Al Saunders' offense. Two cautionary notes that wouldn't have be here w/o Jackson's holdout:
1) he won't see as much work as normal in the first and probably the second game of the season. Plan accordingly.
2) Any long holdout automatically gets an injury risk asterisk next to it.
There's not really a direct correlation between holdouts and injury, but not having seen contact ups the possibility. Still, Jackson's only 25 and has a reduced workload having played just 12 games last year.
St. Louis Rams Fantasy Sleeper:
You can probably draft WR Keenan Burton in the last round or even pick him up off the waiver wire if you want to wait. Burton sits behind Drew Bennett on the depth chart. Last weekend against the Ravens, Bennett missed a quick out on first and 10, the second and final pass thrown to him before he left with an injury. That play is an ugly summary of Bennett's preseason where he has looked out of sync, having no sense of timing with Rams QB Marc Bulger or Al Saunders' complicated playbook. Burton, a 4th round pick this year, has demonstrated a familiarity with the playbook and with Bulger, and even with the backup QBs. Burton has the speed and style of play that makes him a threat in tight coverage and clogged routes.