Packers Friday Practice Injury Update
The Packers currently have many injuries on both sides of the ball. Several key players are banged up and haven’t practiced. Who is on track to play Sunday, and who isn’t?
The Packers will have a short flight over Lake Michigan on Sunday afternoon to play against the Detroit Lions. Even though the Lions’ chances of making playoffs are slim to none, they won’t let the Packers run all over them. With every divisional battle, this should be a great game. It’ll be a lot easier to come away with a win if a few key players return from injury. So who was and wasn’t spotted at the first half of practice Friday?
Packers Offense: Who Is Practicing?
We saw our sixth and seventh receivers play plenty of snaps last week, with several starters dressed in street clothes on the sideline. Samori Toure scored his first career touchdown and compiled a nice stat line on the day. Amari Rodgers also got in the mix as a receiver after his struggles on special teams continued.
Left tackle David Bakhtiari and right tackle Elgton Jenkins were both spotted at practice. Both guys are still not back to full health and have struggled to stay on the field this season. The offensive line this year has been shaky, and it’ll most likely continue that way. Even after Jenkins shifted inside to right guard, he has still struggled to block. With the Packers’ bye week being so far out, both of these guys might have to miss a game to get back on track. The ability to seal the edges is important to containing the pocket presence of quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Five days after rookie receiver Christian Watson was left concussed against the Bills, he is back on the practice field. The hit didn’t look bad, but everyone knew something was up when he just laid there and didn’t move. Watson has struggled to stay on the field, and when he is there, he’s struggled to catch passes from Rodgers. I hope the Packers don’t push him to play if he hasn’t fully recovered from the concussion. Mental health is important.
The best news from the offense is leading receiver Allen Lazard. Lazard missed last week’s game with a left shoulder injury. After back-to-back limited practices on Wednesday and Thursday, he is trending towards playing Sunday. There’s still a strong chance that he goes into the weekend with a questionable injury designation, but fantasy owners should feel comfortable starting him against Detroit. Sammy Watkins and Romeo Doubs will be the other two starting receivers, with Randall Cobb still on injured reserve.
Packers Defense: Who Wasn’t Spotted At Practice?
The Packers leading tackler, linebacker De’Vondre Campbell has still not practiced since suffering a right knee injury against Buffalo on Sunday. At this point, don’t be surprised if the Packers rule out Campbell this evening after practice concludes. With zero practices this week, it’s a long shot for Campbell to play. Rookie linebacker Quay Walker will assume the primary middle linebacker position, and Isaiah McDuffie should slot in beside him, with Eric Wilson in the mix as well.
Defensive back Shemar Jean-Charles still remains out with an ankle injury and should miss his second straight game. He has almost exclusively been a special teams player and has been used sparingly in the secondary. With Jaire Alexander, Rasul Douglas, and Eric Stokes on top of the depth chart, Shemar will remain a depth piece when he returns from injury.
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