Packers OTA Headlines: Johnny Jolly, Sam Shields Absent Again

For a week now, Packers fans and coaches have been awaiting the return of defensive end Johnny Jolly to the team. We broke down his completion of a drug rehab course and he himself said on Twitter that he expected to be back in Green Bay for today's practice.

However, if he is in town, he was not at the Don Hutson Center for practice yet today:

So far no sign of Johnny Jolly at #Packers OTA inside Hutson Center.

— Mike Vandermause (@MikeVandermause) May 28, 2013

I don't want to speculate too much, because we certainly don't know the story yet. It is concerning, however, that he would not be present. One possibility is that he is undergoing a physical examination by the team's medical personnel and has not yet been cleared to practice. Hopefully we will learn more from Mike McCarthy in his press conference this afternoon.

The other no-show at OTAs was Sam Shields, though his absence was somewhat expected. Shields still has not signed his restricted free agent tender, and is unlikely to appear at any voluntary workouts until then. However, he should be present at next week's mandatory minicamp - if he does not show for those practices, then holdout concerns would start to become valid.

We'll have more news and reports from the media in attendance at practice later this afternoon, and we'll bring you the major talking points from coach Mike McCarthy's post-practice press conference as well.

UPDATE: It looks like Jolly's absence wasn't just due to getting a physical. McCarthy didn't say much, only explaining that he wasn't with the team yet. We'll have more in our recap of his presser, but here's a quick taste:

McCarthy: Johnny Jolly is not here. I'll comment on his situation when he's part of the football team.

— Tyler Dunne (@TyDunne) May 28, 2013