Packers Injury Report: QB Aaron Rodgers misses Wednesday practice with thumb injury

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers was injured on the final play of the team’s Week 5 loss to the New York Giants in London on Sunday. During the Hail Mary attempt, Rodgers was hit and apparently injured his thumb, which kept him from practicing with the team on Wednesday. In the pre-practice press conference, head coach Matt LaFleur stated that the team doesn’t “have much concern as far as gameday” regarding Rodgers’ injury.

Beyond Rodgers, outside linebacker Tipa Galeai (hamstring) and receiver Christian Watson (hamstring) were held out of action due to injury. Galeai’s injury appears to be new, as he was not pulled out of play in Week 5. Galeai is a core special teamer who starts on multiple units, including left tackle on punt protection. The punt protection unit is already down a player now with inside linebacker Krys Barnes (ankle) on the injured reserve, forcing tight end Josiah Deguara to move from the wing to a guard position. In place of Deguara, running back Patrick Taylor has been playing the wing. Running back Kylin Hill, who is expected to be the team’s third running back once he returns to the 53-man roster, began practicing with the team on Wednesday. Numbers are going to be tight and this is a sneaky unit to keep an eye on this week.

Watson left Week 5 with a hamstring injury, which also kept him out of Week 3 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Before the injury, Watson had taken over kick return responsibilities from receiver Amari Rodgers, who had been handling returns throughout the 2022 season. It’s worth noting here that Hill was the team’s starting kickoff returner until his ACL injury last year.

Tackles David Bakhtiari (knee) and Elgton Jenkins (knee) along with defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt (quadricep) were all limited on Wednesday. Bakhtiari and Jenkins have been limited in most practices since their return to the team, despite starting on the bookends. The first-round pick Wyatt missed Week 5 with his injury and has played just 28 defensive snaps this season. Last week, the Packers only had four interior defensive linemen active in their loss to the Giants.

Only one player, first-round pass-rusher Jermaine Johnson (ankle), was a non-participant in New York Jets practice today. Four others, tackle Duane Brown (shoulder), defensive end Carl Lawson (ankle), linebacker CJ Mosley (hip) and linebacker Quincy Williams (ankle), were limited on Wednesday.