ST. LOUIS (AP) — Shaun Hill has been here before.

A career backup quarterback, Hill is certain he will be able to successfully run the St. Louis Rams’ offense after Sam Bradford suffered a season-ending knee injury during the weekend.

Hill has been forced into an extended relief role for the second time in his 13-year career. He replaced Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford for 10 games in 2010 when Stafford went down with a shoulder injury.

St. Louis coach Jeff Fisher has the utmost confidence in Hill, who Fisher said looked good handling the offense in practice on Monday.

Hill admits he is a little rusty as he attempted just 36 passes as a backup in Detroit the last three seasons. However, he is ready to embrace his new role since he was signed to a one-year deal by the Rams in March with this scenario in mind.

49ers

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers rookie center Marcus Martin suffered a left knee injury that isn’t considered season-ending, yet still a blow to the depth of a struggling offensive line.

The third-round draft pick was carted off the field with 11:18 remaining during a 21-7 preseason victory Sunday against San Diego.

San Francisco coach Jim Harbaugh said it doesn’t seem to be an ACL injury, and it appears Martin might be able to return later in the season.

Martin already dealt with an ankle injury that sidelined him early in training camp. The 70th overall pick out of Southern California, Martin played 38 games — with 33 starts — over three seasons with the Trojans.

The 49ers are looking to make some quick adjustments on their struggling offensive line, which showed its vulnerabilities in pass protection as quarterback Colin Kaepernick took several hard hits and was constantly pressured Sunday.

Vikings

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings are partnering with the NFL and TRIA Orthopaedic to ensure that every public high school in Minneapolis and St. Paul will have an athletic trainer on the sideline for football games and practices this fall.

The Vikings announced the $50,000 grant on Monday. The grant, which is split by the Vikings and the NFL, will give every football program in those school districts a certified athletic trainer. TRIA will also conduct neurocognitive baseline testing for concussion management and offer ACL injury prevention programs.

Vikings trainer Eric Sugarman says the initiative is aimed at preventing injuries and helping players who do get hurt recover from those injuries.

The Vikings and Bears are the first two teams to use the program, but the NFL says three others have applied and another 10 have expressed interest.

Saints

METAIRIE, La. (AP) — With Drew Brees back healthy, the New Orleans Saints are free to work on the little things that can make the difference between a Super Bowl run and something less.

Rolling through the preseason at 3-0, the Saints still have to choose a placekicker among two candidates, settle on a starting center, figure out veteran defensive back Champ Bailey’s role and determine Brees’ backup.

They don’t have to worry about Brees, though. After throwing two touchdowns in the first quarter against the Colts on Saturday in his return from a strained left oblique, he missed Monday’s practice, but not for health reasons. Rather, he’s been excused to be with his wife, Brittany, who is expecting their fourth child any day.