Jackson and Rams Pound Redskins

Steven Jackson is showing the St. Louis Rams that he is as good as advertised.

The 6-foot-2, 230-pound rookie out of Oregon State bowled over the Redskins for 125 yards in 25 carries and scored on a five-yard run Friday night to help the Rams to a 28-3 victory over Washington at St. Louis.

“When he hits that pile, he’s relentless,” Ram Coach Mike Martz said. “You’d better be prepared to tackle him. He’s what everyone at Oregon State said he was.”

Jackson ran for 3,625 yards and 39 touchdowns in three seasons at Oregon State and was the first running back taken in April’s draft.

The bruising back got better as the game went on, rushing for 103 yards in the second half.

In other exhibition games:

Philip Rivers, the fourth overall pick in April’s draft who ended his holdout earlier in the week, completed his first three passes for 72 yards, but the rookie misfired on his next seven throws, two of which were intercepted, in Seattle’s 26-20 exhibition victory over the Chargers at San Diego.

Matt Hasselbeck completed 18 of 28 passes for 190 yards and one touchdown and Shaun Alexander gained 62 yards in 15 carries to lead the Seahawks.

At Denver, Jake Plummer threw for 159 yards, ran for a score and led the Broncos’ top unit to its first two touchdowns of the exhibition season in a 31-17 victory over Houston.

Plummer finished 12 of 22 with an interception, Triandos Luke caught a 74-yard touchdown pass and Quentin Griffin had 54 yards and a touchdown in 13 carries.

Houston’s David Carr threw for 114 yards and a touchdown on eight of 13 passing.

At Chicago, third-team quarterback J.T. O’Sullivan set up his go-ahead touchdown run with a long pass and New Orleans defeated the Bears, 17-13.

Ki-Jana Carter, battling for a roster spot, had consecutive runs of 12 and 39 yards to help the Saints on their winning drive.

Paul Edinger’s 32-yard field goal capped a 52-yard drive that ate up nearly eight minutes of the third quarter and put the Bears ahead, 13-10.

At Minneapolis, Daunte Culpepper was 20 for 27 for 204 yards and a touchdown as the Vikings defeated San Francisco, 23-10.

The Vikings outgained San Francisco, 326-61, in the first half and took a 16-0 lead.

Minnesota running back Michael Bennett and left tackle Bryant McKinnie sprained their right knees on the first unit’s only series of the third quarter.

At Jacksonville, Fla., Josh Scobee kicked three field goals as the Jaguars defeated Green Bay, 9-7.

Scobee, a fifth-round draft pick from Louisiana Tech, made tries of 23, 32 and 43 yards.

Brett Favre played a half for Green Bay (1-2), throwing a 52-yard touchdown pass to Robert Ferguson.

At East Rutherford, N.J., Eli Manning, the top choice in April’s draft, struggled as the New York Jets defeated the New York Giants, 17-10.

The Jets threw all kinds of defensive alignments at the Giants with frequent safety blitzes and a mix of coverages. While Giant quarterback Kurt Warner handled them and led his team to a first-quarter touchdown on Ron Dayne’s nine-yard run, Manning seemed befuddled.

Manning’s first pass was intercepted by Donnie Abraham. Manning also was intercepted by Reggie Tongue in the third quarter, finishing only four of 14 for 20 yards with two interceptions, two sacks and a fumble.

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New England released veteran receiver and former UCLA standout J.J. Stokes.

Stokes, 31, was signed as a free agent on March 3.

Last season, after being released by Jacksonville on Nov. 12, Stokes was signed by the Patriots. He appeared in two games and was released on Dec. 9, but was re-signed on Jan. 17 for the playoffs.

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Baltimore running back Jamal Lewis did not appear at his arraignment, but his lawyers entered a not guilty plea on charges in an expanded drug conspiracy indictment.

Lewis, 24, is accused of trying to broker a cocaine deal in the summer of 2000 for co-defendant Angelo Jackson, 26.

Their trial is set for Nov. 1.