To fill the final vacant spot on their 90-man roster, the Packers have added wide receiver Gerrard Sheppard. Sheppard was claimed off of waivers from the Baltimore Ravens.
With the addition, Green Bay now has a total of 11 wide receivers. It's unclear whether Sheppard was claimed to account for Jeff Janis' absence, which head coach Mike McCarthy described as "a little different" in Wednesday's press conference.
At 6-2 and 211 lbs., Sheppard possesses a similar build to many of his new receiver teammates. He entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2013, spending the year on the Ravens' practice squad. Prior to that, he played two years at Towson, a Division I FCS program. Sheppard has been issued jersey no. 9.
On the surface, the move would seem to extinguish whatever hope Jermichael Finley still had for a return with the Packers. The team removed his nameplate from the locker room earlier this week.
UPDATE: We asked Jason Butt of SB Nation's Ravens blog, Baltimore Beat Down, if he had any impressions of Sheppard from his time in Baltimore, and here was his response:
Absolutely nothing notable. He was a local guy that went to Towson and would have been a practice squad guy again at best. It definitely caught my eye that Green Bay put a waiver claim on him because that indicates someone in the scouting department thinks he can be a good player. And, to be honest, as much as the Ravens are lauded for their front office, I'd trust the Packers when it comes to receiver talent before (GM) Ozzie Newsome's bunch.