Packers Release Injured TE Colt Lyerla

The Packers have released injured Tight End Colt Lyerla, USA Today's Tom Pelissero reports. 

Lyerla, a rookie out of Oregon, tore multiple ligaments in his knee earlier this week, an injury that will probably keep him out a couple of months.

So, in a move that'll definitely surprise some, the Pack cut him this afternoon, officially limiting their amount of possible starters to just three (Recent Draftee Richard Rodgers, and longtime backups Andrew Quarless and Brandon Bostick)

Lyerla, 21, signed with the Pack this summer after a workout, giving him the NFL chance he originally didn't have after going undrafted.

Packers Don't Think Bostick's Leg Injury is Serious

The Packers don't think TE Brandon Bostick's leg injury is serious, ESPN.com's Rob Demovsky reports.

During yesterday's preseason win over the Rams, Bostick sustained the wound, the details of which have yet to be revealed.

Nonetheless, this news is definitely good for Green Bay, as who will start for them at Jermichael Finley's old position this year is a complete mystery.

Remember, since Colt Lyerla just got hurt and will be out weeks this season's TE possibilities have begun to dwindle, with Bostick, longtime backup Andrew Quarless, and rookie Richard Rodgers really the only possible candidates at this point.

Lyerla Out "Weeks" After Tearing MCL, PCL

Rookie Packers TE Colt Lyerla will be out "weeks" after tearing both his MCL and PCL in a Family Night practice Sunday night, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's Bon McGinn reports. 

On the play the injuries occurred on, interestingly, Lyerla had just hurdled CB Jumal Rolle after catching a Matt Flynn pass, appearing to make himself due for a nice contribution.

Unfortunetaly, though, that wouldn't prove to be the case, with #49 getting hit hard by Jarrett Bush seconds later.

To make things even worse, exactly how long Lyerla will be out isn't yet known, something that must be killing HC Mike McCarthy, as the latter has already had to deal with multiple serious injuries over the last month.

Barclay Tears ACL; Will Miss 2014 Season

Packers Offensive Lineman Don Barclay suffered a torn ACL in practice today and will now miss the 2014 season, Pro Football Talk's Josh Alper reports. 

Apparently, during a pass blocking routine this afternoon Barclay was carted off the field with a knee injury, at first appearing to be nothing serious.

Unfortunetaly, though, that idea has since been proven incorrect, a frustrating truth Green Bay must be getting used to by now, as Barclay is one of three guys (joining Jared Abbrederis and Colt Lyerla, who will now miss several weeks) already this weak to go down with a major wound.

Lyerla Diagnosed With Knee Sprain

Packers Tight End Colt Lyerla has been diagnosed with a knee sprain, Cheesehead TV reports. 

During yesterday's practice, it was found that Lyerla had suffered some kind of leg injury, causing many Green Bay fans to hold their breath.

Fortunetaly, though, nothing too serious has been found, and the sprain won't keep Lyerla out for the 2014 season.

Remember, earlier this week it was announced that fellow rookie and ex-Badger Jared Abbrederis had torn his ACL, probably giving a good amount of Pack followers that "here we go again" feeling we've all become accustomed to over the last few years. 

2014 Starting TE Job Still "Wide Open"

The Packers 2014 starting TE job is still "wide open," team assistant Jerry Fontenot recently told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

According to Fontenot, Green Bay will have a better idea of who should get the position come Training Camp, although for now nobody is favored. 

Currently, the Pack's main two candidates for the role seem to be veteran Andrew Quarless and rookie Richard Rodgers, although FA Jermichael Finley could always find a way back in, as he's recovering pretty fast from the neck injury he suffered last season.

Ex-Oregon Duck Colt Lyerla's name has also occasionally come up as a possibility.

Who Will Start At Tight End for the Packers?

This recent mailbag on ESPN discussed a few interesting topics, and the one regarding the starting tight end position got my attention because I was just discussing that topic with a colleague.

Mailbag: Talking starting jobs at TE, S http://t.co/YapH2LDRCX
— Brandon Benson (@AcmeBrandon) July 8, 2014

Rob Demovsky's opinion is that if rookie TE Richard Rodgers "continues to show the ability to catch the ball down the field like he did this offseason, then he will be the starter." I'm not expecting much from the TE position in 2014, and I don't disagree with his assessment that Rodgers could be the starter, but I find it depressing.

In pre-draft evaluations, Rodgers came across as a finesse athlete who could be a sneaky weapon as a No. 2 TE, and compared him to TE Garrett Graham, who isn't much of a receiver. It was also noted that Rodgers would on occasion drop an easy reception.

His main competition is TE Andrew Quarless, who hasn't impressed so far in his NFL career. He could be an identical player; someone who isn't much of a blocker with the occasional drop. I'm still expecting Quarless to win the starting job because of his experience alone though I'm not expecting much from either one of them this preseason.

It's been reported that TE Jermichael Finley is healthy, but several weeks have passed since that report and you'd expect he'd have been signed somewhere if every team was convinced it was true. It's possible the Packers could re-sign him, but it feels like they've moved on.

As much as TE Colt Lyerla fascinates me, he's an unlikely candidate to earn a starting job and he's got to secure a roster spot first. I don't know how TE Ryan Taylor has kept a roster spot for three years (is it because he's the back-up long-snapper?) and TE Jake Stoneburner looks like Taylor v.2.0. Maybe TE Brandon Bostick will show more in his second season and I haven't yet seen undrafted rookie TE Justin Perillo play.

The Packers have so much offensive firepower at wide receiver and running back that they can afford to go with a second (or third, fourth) tier TE. Maybe it's good to keep my expectations so low that one of them will surprise me this preseason. But it remains a weakened position that shouldn't be expected to carry much of a load in 2014.

Packers Minicamp Wrap-Up: Franklin Remains The Big Story

The Packers ended their 2014 minicamp on Thursday by giving their veterans the day off. They now have just over a month off before they return for training camp on July 25.

I've been reading Aron Yohannes at Acme Packing Company, who's been doing a great job of following the practices live and accumulating tweets from the various beat reporters.

The overall theme I've read was that their receivers (wideouts and tight ends) all are practicing well. None of it matters until they start playing games, but they now have a deep group to choose from. Last season, the offense was lacking an effective pass receiving tight end after Jermichael Finley's injury, and they need either Richard Rodgers or Colt Lyerla to step up. Lyerla's a major character risk, but he's doing well so far. Maybe the move away from Oregon (where he's seemed to have lived for most of his life) to Green Bay, WI where he can work with a small group of professionals is exactly what he needs.

FYI- Lyerla's a fascinating player. He's like a TE version of Eddie Lacy; an absolute load to bring down in the open field. Sometimes he lined up in the backfield and took the hand-off (he was a star running back in high school). Richard Rodgers is more like Finley, a big receiving threat who can exploit mismatches against smaller DBs, while Lyerla could bring another dimension to the offense.

However, the news of Johnathan Franklin's retirement due to a neck injury was the major story. As far as the roster's concerned, it presents an opportunity for DuJuan Harris to fill a role on offense and special teams next season, but the big takeaway for me is how quickly a NFL career can be over. The best of luck to him in his future plans.

Lyerla Convinced Troubled Past Will Help His NFL Future

Since he was signed by the Packers last month, former Oregon TE Colt Lyerla has faced criticism for his troubled past.

Despite that, the ex-college star is still convinced that his past mistakes will help him in his NFL Future, something he recently revealed to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's Tyler Dunne.

"Once you've been to the bottom you see what you need to do as a person and the changes you need to make," Lyerla said. "I think that's going to help me become a better person in the locker room."

Lyerla, a 2012 Fiesta Bowl Champion, signed with the Packers shortly after a workout, making the fact that he went undrafted pretty irrelevant.

Packers considering signing TE Colt Lyerla

The Packers are considering signing former Oregon TE Colt Lyerla, CSN Northwest's Aaron Fentress reports. 

Lyerla, a 2012 Fiesta Bowl Champion with a recent arrest on his record, worked out for the team earlier this week, apparently making a strong impression. 

According to Fentress, the Pack have previously done research on the undrafted youngster, a big reason why they gave him the chance they did.

“We did a lot of work on Colt,” Green Bay GM Ted Thompson said yesterday. “He’s very talented. We interviewed him at the combine. He’s made some mistakes. We felt he was worth bringing in and taking a look at.”

That last part may be true, as the ex-Duck undoubtedly has potential, but still, the debate on whether or not the risk of signing him is worth taking is there.

As I said in the post I did about Lyerla Saturday, the prospect can be irresponsible off the field, so I guess the Packers just have to decide if they think he's worth it. In my opinion, he probably is, as people who do dumb stuff usually don't mess up twice, but again, you can never be too sure. He could always take a turn for the worst. 

Packers Give Former Oregon TE Colt Lyerla a Tryout

The Green Bay Packers have given troubled Oregon TE Colt Lyerla a tryout, NBC Sports' Darin Gantt reports.

Lyerla, once considered College Football's best TE, was kicked off the Ducks near of the middle of last season due to an off-the-field drug arrest, somewhat ruining his career. 

Because of that issue, Lyerla was made ineligible for the 2014 NFL Draft, causing teams like the Packers to sympathetically give him a chance.

During his two and a half seasons at the Pac-12 school, Lyerla was solid for the National Championship contenders, catching 34 passes for 565 yards. Interestingly, 25 of those catches and 392 of those yards came in 2012, meaning that this guy appears to be capable of contributing when he's behaving.

That year, Oregon went a dominant 12-1, winning the Fiesta Bowl easily over Kansas State. 

However, the previously mentioned arrest and controversial tweets ended up knocking #15 out of the public's eye, making his recent tryout with Green Bay very important to his possible NFL future.

Still, even if the showing does pay off it seems unlikely that it'd help him much, as the Pack already have two solid TEs in Andrew Quarless and Richard Rodgers on their roster.