Packers place Kevin King on IR, activate Goodson

The Packers officially sent rookie corner Kevin King to IR today, ending his season, In a corresponding move, activating Demetri Goodson from the PUP list.

This is a disappointing end for King, who showed great promise early in the season before suffering a lingering shoulder injury that will likely require off-season surgery. King struggled at times, but he also has impressive games against some great receivers, including Atlanta’s Julio Jones, and he is the best tackler among the corners. He hasn’t been as effective since suffering the injury and shutting him down is probably the right move, but it is still a blow to the Packers’ already dwindling playoff hopes.

Goodson is returning from a catastrophic knee injury suffered last November against Washington, and it’s nice to see him playing again as it was the type of injury that can derail a career. Goodson is a decent special teams player, but he has only served as depth in the secondary, and the drop from King to anyone other than Damarious Randall and Davon House is immense. Fortunately, the Cleveland Browns have one of the worst passing offenses in the game, and if nothing else, the team should have a week to adjust to the new normal.

King will miss out on development time, and this injury may impact his growth as a player into next season. Injuries to Damarious Randall and Quinten Rollins negatively impacted their sophomore seasons, and seeing this happen again is certainly disconcerting. In the meantime, Goodson will provide some depth at the position.