Rams G Rokevious Watson suspended for one game

St. Louis Rams guard Rokevious Watkins has been suspended by the NFL for the first game of the 2013 regular season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy.

What exactly Watkins did to earn a one-game unpaid vacation remains unclear at this point but the guard won’t be around for Week 1. Watkins, a fifth-round draft pick in 2012 from South Carolina, started the season opener a year ago before an ankle injury cost him the rest of the year.

Watkins is expected to be in the mix for the starting job again but Barrett Jones, the rookie from Alabama, and former Chicago Bears’ first-round draft pick Chris Williams could figure in the mix. Williams joined the Rams last season after being released in Chicago and re-signed there so they have a handle on his game.

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Brad Biggs covers the Bears for the Chicago Tribune

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