Colts visit Rams for preseason opener

~ St. Louis' Scott Linehan will get his first game experience as an NFL head coach.

ST. LOUIS -- Marshall Faulk is gone, at least for the season if not forever, for the St. Louis Rams. Edgerrin James left the Indianapolis Colts for a free-agent deal with the Arizona Cardinals.

How their replacements do will be a focal point tonight when the Rams host the Colts in the preseason opener for both teams.

Steven Jackson took over the starting job last year in St. Louis and gained 1,046 yards, but questions about his durability remain. He had a hip pointer last season that caused him to miss the season finale against Dallas. A rib problem slowed him earlier in the season. He's expected to play today despite a slight strain to the Achilles' heel.

And Faulk is no longer there as a backup -- he's out for the season after knee surgery and, at 33, there is some doubt if he will ever play again. Jackson is ready for the comparisons with the former MVP to stop.

"I'm not a Marshall-type of running back," Jackson said. "It's no disrespect to him and it's no disrespect to me, we're just different backs."

New coach Scott Linehan plans to run more than his predecessor, Mike Martz. Backing up Jackson are free-agent pickups Tony Fisher from Green Bay and Moe Williams from Minnesota.

While the Rams are set at running back, the Colts remain up in the air at the position. Veteran backup Dominic Rhodes and first-round pick Joseph Addai seek to replace James as the starter.

Coach Tony Dungy said he wants to take a good look at Addai.

"Joseph needs to play, and he'll get some time in there," Dungy said. "We'd like to get him a little bit with the first group and then get him a good dose with the second group.

"The more he plays, the better he's going to get."

Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, who figures to play a series or two, is also eager to see what Addai can do in a game situation.

"He's been getting a lot of reps in practice, and I think coach Dungy tries to run the practices like games," Manning said. "He needs as many reps as he can get with the first group. I think that would be beneficial to him. At the same time, Dominic needs some reps, too."

Last season, the Colts lost all five preseason games before reeling off 13 consecutive wins in the regular season, on the way to an NFL-best 14-2 mark. The accomplishment was dimmed by a loss to Pittsburgh in the playoffs.

Indianapolis has been hampered with injuries in training camp. Backup quarterback Jim Sorgi has missed time with a sore shoulder. Behind him are two undrafted rookie free agents -- Josh Betts who took over for Ben Roethlisberger at Miami (Ohio) and the recently-signed Mike McGann from Temple -- and NFL veteran Shaun King, who played with Dungy in Tampa.

Linehan, who has never been a head coach at any level, makes his game debut and, preseason or not, wants his club to get off to a good start on the heels of a 6-10 season that led to Martz's ouster.

"My biggest thing is that we go out and do the little things well. You always are able to see improvement in your team when you go out and take care of the fundamental part of the game," Linehan said.

"We're going to play to win the game, no doubt. We're all going to compete to win."