FanHouse StevenJackson

Steve Spagnuolo is going through a rough season in his first as an NFL head coach. He had the unenviable task of taking over a roster which was left in disarray by the previous administration. No real effort had been done to bridge the gap from The Greatest Show on Turf to the next wave of players, with the notable exception of drafting studly running back Steven Jackson before Marshall Faulk was retired.

The results to this point have hardly been surprising. Poor Spags and his troops endured seven losses, including several blowouts, before finally earning their first victory this past Sunday against the Lions. While he's cherishing this first win, Spagnuolo realizes it's the first step of many.

Despite making a good amount of money to coach in the National Football League, Steve Spagnuolo has an unenviable task this year: coaching the St. Louis Rams. The Rams won just two games a year ago, and the roster was in a state of transition -- and in disrepair, really -- when he took over as the new head honcho.

If not for the ineptitude of the Lions, the 2008 Rams would have easily been the worst team in football. Only two teams scored less points and only one team (Lions, of course) allowed more. Some of the most talented players were aging and they dismissed two former stars (Orlando Pace and Torry Holt) as part of the rebuilding process after the disastrous campaign. Spagnuolo, though, is tired of hearing about and having to talk about 2008.

Each Monday morning of the fantasy football season, we'll cut through the fantasy numbers put up by individuals and tell you what they really mean.

You know what Kyle Orton's line should have been? 16 of 28 with 156 yards and no touchdowns. He would have had a few more passing attempts before losing the game, which likely would have made him 16 of 30 or 17 of 31 or so. Instead, he was the beneficiary of the most insane amount of luck we've ever seen on one play in fantasy football. He forces a throw to Brandon Marshall in double-coverage, badly under-throws him and the Bengals tip the ball up in the air. The rest is history. And Kyle Orton had a decent fantasy day.

But don't be fooled.

While there are always going to be matchups we like and others we don't like, we need to remember it's Week 1 of a new fantasy football season. The preseason doesn't matter too much, nor does last season. Sure, we have to use something upon which to base our rankings, and those factors will be somewhat weighed, but we also need to use our brain and not get too cute.

For example, Ryan Grant shredded the Bears last season in Green Bay. Does that mean he's going to blow up again? Considering the Bears' run defense is much stronger than pass, we're saying an emphatic no. That's just one example, and we'll talk a bit more after you've seen the top 50 fantasy running backs for the week.

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Training camps have wrapped up, the NFL season is right around the corner, and it's still hot as sin outside. But instead of cooling you off with a warm island song, FanHouse break out ye old heat check for our 2009 NFL Season Previews. We'll rate each club in 5 categories on a scale of 1 to 10, high score wins.

The Rams enter the 2009 season in full-on rebuilding mode. Another bad season wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing for the future of the franchise as a whole, as they need to continue to grow their young players. The remnants of the strong Rams rosters from earlier this decade are either gone or aging quickly. New head coach Steve Spagnuolo will look to mold the next generation his way, starting immediately.

As the season nears, FanHouse's fantasy football team decided to put our heads together for another set of updated positional rankings. In this installment, we'll hit up the thoroughbreds.

The thing that sticks out to me, when viewing the running backs for this season, is what a muddled mess the group is. I stared at a group of about 15 players -- those ranked from six to 20 -- for probably 45 minutes while tinkering with how to rank them. Some will pan out, and some will end up being viewed as busts. May the force be with you. (Last Updated: 8/27/09)

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For those who may use a different term or are new to fantasy football, "handcuff" is the term used when you own insurance for one of your players in the form of owning his real-life backup. It's usually a running back, but you could conceivably handcuff a quarterback. The theory is that some or all of the production is automatically replaced should you lose a high draft pick to injury, meaning you need to insure a high draft pick by grabbing his backup.

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The Rams have been getting noticed for their incredibly physical training camp under the new Steve Spagnuolo regime. There are many positives to having a physically intense camp, but there's always the increased risk of losing an important player to injury. Remember, the Rams dodged a close call with their franchise player last week.

Friday night, No. 1 wide receiver Donnie Avery came down with a foot injury during an intrasquad scrimmage. The injury wasn't believed to be serious, but, come Sunday, Avery was experiencing enough pain that the team ordered an MRI. The results came back with bad news.

To understate things a bit, the 2-14 Rams were a bad football team in 2008. If not for a brief two-game reprieve after firing Scott Linehan and the presence of the winless Detroit Lions, St. Louis would have easily been the worst team in football. Just one year removed, most people doubt the Rams can quickly reverse their fortunes, despite one-year flips by the Falcons and Dolphins last season.

While they may not immediately transform into winners, new head coach Steve Spagnuolo -- who came over from the incredibly physical NFC East -- is already changing the environment in St. Louis. According to everyone who has visited the Rams, this is one of the most intense and physical camps in recent memory.

Here you go, cheat sheet fans. No analysis or explanations ... just the down-and-dirty list. (CLICK HERE for most recent update: 8/30/09)

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1. Adrian Peterson, RB, Vikings
2. Maurice Jones-Drew, RB, Jaguars
3. Michael Turner, RB, Falcons
4. Matt Forte, RB, Bears
5. Steven Jackson, RB, Rams