The Atlanta Falcons are 1-2 after losing to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday and with the New England Patriots coming up in Week 4 on Sunday Night Football, the team will be lacking in the running game with Steven Jackson out for a little while, leaving fantasy owners to decide whether to start Jason Snelling or Jacquizz Rodgers.
Jackson was injured back in Week 2 after suffering a thigh bruise and a hamstring injury and now ESPN.com is reporting that the running back could be out for up to three more games. According to ESPN.com, Jackson sat out the loss against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday with the injury, leaving Jacquizz Rodgers and Jason Snelling to handle the running game and while the combined for over 100 yards in the game, it wasn't enough to win.
The Falcons made it to the NFC championship game last season and now they will have to catch up to the 3-0 New Orleans Saints, who have looked much improved from last year when they started 0-4. The Falcons need their running game to be more consistent after Michael Turner was a royal disappointment last season and that was one reason why the team did not make it to the Super Bowl.
The team released Turner in the offseason and made a smart signing in Steven Jackson, who had been one of the most consistent and dependable running backs in the NFL over the past few years. Jackson is now out with a thigh and hamstring issue and that leaves Rodgers and Snelling to take over. My fantasy team has tons of issues at running back, so I snagged both players, but now I am in the tough position of deciding who to start.
Rodgers has more of an upside with his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield, but Snelling may get touchdowns as the goal line back. If you are in a PPR league, Rodgers is likely the answer, but if TDs are weighted heavily on scoring, it's better for Snelling to go. Rodgers could be a breakout player because of his speed and while he only had 17 yards against the Rams, he rushed for 86 yards on 18 carries and averaged nearly five years per carry, a very nice total for owners.
Snelling is an interesting play as well because of the scoring and also because he got a solid amount of carries as well in the last game with 11 and he finished with 53 yards on the day. He has done well catching the ball, making 10 catches this season and he also averaged five yards per carry and got into the endzone against both the Rams and the Falcons. For anyone in a PPR league, go with Rodgers, but otherwise play Snelling, as the Patriots are tough and he could have a solid game.
Jackson has only played in two games this season and has yet to score a TD running the ball and after opening with 77 yards on the ground, including a 50 yard run and five catches for 45 yards and he also added a TD in the Rams game. He has yet to play since then and that is a far cry from his time in St. Louis, as he played in at least 15 games in his last four seasons and had over 300 carries twice.
