Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Packer Injuries: Matthews, Sherrod, and the D-Line

The bad news is that LB Clay Matthews may still not be available next Sunday, but the bigger concern might be on the defensive line.
They've survived so far without CB Charles Woodson and CB Sam Shields. WR Donald Driver hasn't played much this season. DE C.J. Wilson is not a surprise, neither is backup RB Johnny White, since they both were hurt during the loss to the Giants. I'm not sure why DT Ryan Pickett has been held out because the injury report hasn't been released yet, but Mike McCarthy said Pickett will return to practice no later than Friday.

While shutting down the Vikings' passing attack is probably the key to the game, I still expect the Packers to frequently line up with three defensive lineman when they face RB Adrian Peterson. That could be hard to do if two starters (Pickett and Wilson) are out. However, DE Jerel Worthy has returned from his concussion, so he'll provide depth alongside DE Mike Neal and DE Mike Daniels. But that would with only be five healthy lineman, and any setback by Pickett could leave them with a very tight four man rotation.

I doubt it's a surprise to anyone reading this but it's finally official: OL Derek Sherrod is not playing this season. His leg injury was severe, and it happened late last season, so it's not surprising he needs more time to recover. I'm not sure how much could have helped anyway, but the offensive line's problems aren't going away so he can become part of the solution in 2013.

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