Even when times were bad and the playoffs looked impossible, Rams running back Steven Jackson never gave up on himself or his teammates. He finished the year strong and for that effort the NFL has named Jackson NFC Offensive Player of the Month.
Jackson started the month with two games of less than 100-yards rushing, but he more than made up with his play in the passing game. In week 13 against Arizona, Jackson carried the ball 21 times for 96 yards. He added nine receptions for 69 yards. He went over 1,000 yards for the season in the Arizona game, his second consecutive 1,000 yard rushing season. The next week, in a Monday Night Football loss to the Bears, Jackson gained 81 yards on 18 carries with a touchdown and caught 10 passes for 58 yards and another score.
After those two games, he really started to heat up. Jackson finished the year with a career-high three-straight 100-yard rushing games. He recorded 127 yards and two touchdowns on 31 carries against the Raiders in week 14. The third-year back from Oregon State set a new career-high with 33 carries for 150 yards and a touchdown, adding six catches for 102 yards and another score against Washington. Jackson became the sixth player since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger to gain at least 150 rushing yards and 100 receiving yards in the same game, the first player to do so in Rams history.
In the season finale at Minnesota, Jackson rushed 25 times for 142 yards and a career-high three touchdowns. He had two receptions for 24 yards and a touchdown, giving him a four touchdown game. It was the first four touchdown game for a Rams player since Marshall Faulk did it versus Seattle in 2002.
Jackson led all NFL running backs with 849 yards from scrimmage and seven rushing touchdowns over the last month of the season. He was also named to the NFC Pro Bowl roster.
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