“So, Steven, do you hate Haslett?”

That was the first question directed at Steven Jackson on Thursday at his weekly gathering with reporters at Rams Park. It was a joke, of course. But Jackson grew serious when explaining that he and coach Jim Haslett are on solid terms.

“Me and Coach Haslett are good,” he said. “We’ve been able to kind of look back . . . and laugh about it. Everything is fine.”

Jackson was steamed after Sunday’s 16-12 loss over Haslett’s assertion that he was “gassed” in the late going. Among other things Jackson said then was, “I wish he’d quit saying that.”

The two talked it over, and Haslett acknowledged that his choice of words wasn’t the best. “He explained to me . . . he was talking about the quad muscle fatiguing and not so much about my lung capacity,” said Jackson, who had missed four of the previous five games with the strained thigh.

On Thursday, Haslett said, “We’re fine. There’s no issues at all, nothing at all. He’s a good guy, works hard, and we’re just glad to have him back and ready to go. It gives us a good chance to win when he’s around. That kind of helps.”

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Notes & quotes:

*Haslett removed the qualifiers Thursday: Chris Draft, back after missing a month with a broken foot, will start at middle linebacker Sunday at Arizona.

*Jackson, who had 22 touches vs. the Dolphins, expects to step it up even more vs. the Cardinals. “I was able to practice full-go the last two days, and the leg feels really good,” he reported. “I’d like to definitely be on the field on third-down situations and make their defense play honest and not so much them playing against the pass so heavily or against the run. We want to keep them as balanced on defense as much as possible.”

*DL Victor Adeyanju (neck) sat out Thursday, but Haslett said he should be ready to go Sunday.

All for now . . .