Jim Haslett might not be the president of the St. Louis chapter of the Brett Favre Fan Club, but he’s still an unabashed admirer of the 38-year-old quarterback. The Rams will take on Favre and his Jets teammates on Sunday in East Rutherford, N.J.

“I think he may be the best player that ever played the game, at least the most competitive player that ever played the game,” Haslett said. “I love the guy. If I was building a football team and somebody said you could have one player . . . that’s the guy I would take, because I love his competitiveness, his arm strength, his mobility. The guy is unbelievable. . . . He’s everything you want in a quarterback.”

Count Marc Bulger among the Favre faithful, too. “He’s been playing for so long at such a high level,” Bulger said. “You look at last year. He had a couple of years there where everyone thought he was retiring, and then he comes out with the year he had last year. . . . He hasn’t changed his approach to the game the whole time he’s played.”

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Notes & quotes:

*With Steven Jackson (thigh), Antonio Pittman (hamstring) and Travis Minor (concussion) sidelined, Kenneth Darby and Samkon Gado worked with the first team at running back in practice Wednesday. “I’m thinking right now that Darby and Sam are our two running backs,” Haslett said. “And then if the other three miraculously come around and play, then we’ll be better for it. That’s how I’m going into it.”

*Concerned that his knee still is giving him problems a month after he tore cartilage, CB Tye Hill plans to get a second opinion next week from renowned orthopedist Dr. James Andrews.

*S Todd Johnson returned to practice after missing two games with a bruised kidney.

All for now . . .