With Rams running back Steven Jackson boycotting training camp until he gets a new contract, and with his agent rejecting an offer that was made on Friday, the Rams have decided to cut off talks on a new contract until Jackson reports.

Jackson is following the same strategy employed in 2007 by Chiefs running back Larry Johnson, who wanted to cash in before the conclusion of his rookie contract.  Johnson did, and then he missed most of the season with an injury.

The problem is that running backs constantly are at risk of an injury that diminishes permanently their value on the market.  So once a running back becomes a stud, he needs to get that second contract as soon as he can.

Jackson is due to earn $1.7 million in 2008, the final season of his five-year rookie deal.

For the Rams, the best strategy would be to hold the carrot of a big deal in front of Jackson for all of 2008, and then possibly to use the franchise tag on him in 2009, getting another season of high production without having to cough up an eight-figure signing bonus.

Come 2010, if Jackson is still in one piece, the Rams could either franchise him again, sign him to a long-term deal, or go younger at the position and let him walk.

So Jackson wants the money now, before he spends all of 2008, and possibly 2009, running with reckless abandon (and risking a train wreck to his career) in search of big money.

Meanwhile, Jackson will be racking up fines in excess of $15,000 per day until he shows up.

Last year, quarterback Marc Bulger staged a brief holdout.  But he got a new deal before the Rams pulled the plug on negotiations.