If the St. Louis Rams benching Steven Jackson--more here--weren't enough of a wake-up call to their Hall of Fame running back, his replacement's performance should be pretty jarring. Since coming into the Rams vs. Redskins game after Steven Jackson was benched for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, seventh-round pick Daryl Richardson has come right after the Washington Redskins defense, rushing the ball eight times for 70 yards and picking up the all-important two-point-conversion in the fourth quarter that has the Rams up by a field goal.

If that's not the rookie you were expecting from the Rams behind Steven Jackson--well, your guess about Isaiah Pead is as good as ours. Pead continues to play on special teams, but the second rounder (and Jackson's official heir apparent) has still yet to take an NFL carry in the regular season.

Steven Jackson has done too much for the Rams--and even did too much Sunday--to be Wally Pipped in an afternoon. But Daryl Richardson's strong performance, and Jeff Fisher's stern response to the penalty, mean he's not quite as secure in his position as the Rams' official offensive focal point as we thought.