Allen Lazard’s shoulder is in a sling, LaFleur makes no promises for Week 8

Green Bay Packers leading receiver Allen Lazard was in and out against the Washington Commanders on Sunday after he suffered a shoulder injury that was clearly bothering him during the game. According to Kassidy Hill of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Lazard’s shoulder was wrapped in ice last night in the locker room.

Today, per Hill, Lazard walked into the locker room with his left arm in a sling and didn’t stop to chat with reporters. Soon after, head coach Matt LaFleur was asked about Lazard’s health, to which he replied, “He hurt his shoulder and I’m gonna kinda leave it at that and see how it heals throughout the course of the week.”

The last thing that the Packers need going into Sunday Night Football against the AFC-leading Buffalo Bills is another injury in the receiver room. Lazard was already dealing with an ankle injury earlier this season, which stemmed from being stepped on by a teammate in practice. Christian Watson, who had an off-season knee surgery, has missed games with his second hamstring injury of the year. Randall Cobb (ankle) was just placed on injured reserve and Sammy Watkins (hamstring) just made his return off of the injured reserve list.

The only receivers to be healthy for this entire season are rookies Romeo Doubs and Samori Toure (who made his season debut on Sunday) along with Amari Rodgers, who LaFleur said the team is considering benching as a punt returner. The lack of chemistry on the field for quarterback Aaron Rodgers is as clear as day. Hopefully, Lazard’s recovery is quick so Rodgers has a familiar face to throw to against one of the better defenses in the league this weekend.

LaFleur also was asked about left tackle David Bakhtiari’s knee injury, to which he responded answers that boiled down to “it is what it is.” The head coach also claimed that one of the reasons the offense is in the shotgun so much is because of issues that present themselves when Rodgers is under center, as Rodgers has been dealing with a thumb injury that has kept him from participating in a full week’s worth of practices since he was injured on a Hail Mary attempt in London.