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On Tuesday afternoon, Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy spoke with the media to discuss the team's injury situations, as well as some recent transactions. The big topic of the press conference was of course Aaron Rodgers, and reporters wasted no time in asking the question on everyone's minds.
He has not been cleared yet from the medical staff, Aaron Rodgers will practice tomorrow in a limited fashion and we have not ruled him out for the game yet ... Aaron wants to play ... it's a medical situation, he has clear understanding of where he is as far as the process of getting back on the field. He feels good, we'll see what he can do tomorrow.
Despite saying that Rodgers will practice on Wednesday, McCarthy did say that Matt Flynn will get the starter's reps in practice, suggesting that he would start in Rodgers' place if he is again ruled out this week. He referred to Flynn's experience as a main reason why he would get the nod. Finally, McCarthy said that the Packers have had "no internal conversations about shutting Aaron Rodgers down," and that Rodgers will play when he is healthy enough to do so.
McCarthy also addressed the release of safety Jerron McMillian:
Jerron McMillian, releasing him today it's tough...obviously you have expectations, this was something we felt we needed to do from a roster standpoint...his individual performance wasn't quite where it needed to be this year. You never want to give up on a guy but this was something we felt we needed to do.
On the subject of that transaction, McCarthy talked about Kahlil Bell and his potential contributions, saying that he looks forward to Bell adding some veteran presence to the special teams and that he expects him to be in the mix at running back.
There was good news for the Packers' offensive line, however, as both of the Packers linemen who have been injured recently are apparently on track to return. McCarthy was specifically asked about Derek Sherrod's role, but expanded his answer to give more clarity on the line as a whole:
It was good to get Derek (Sherrod) in the game last week...Don Barclay he feels good, Evan Dietrich-Smith, talked to him earlier, he feels good, I'm hopeful we'll get back to the line that we (had) a few weeks ago.
All in all, that's a good sign, as it sounds like EDS will be able to play on Sunday. If the starting five are back together again, whichever quarterback plays should have a better chance at staying on his feet.
