The Green Bay Packers are going to have trouble staying in the playoff hunt over the next several games without Aaron Rodgers. But even if they manage to continue fighting for a wild card spot, the star quarterback is not going to rush himself back.
Rodgers suffered a fractured collarbone a month ago, and he has been on the practice field this week doing some of his rehab drills on the sideline. He told ESPN Wisconsin’s Jason Wilde that getting back on the field was a big step but that nothing about his recovery timeline has changed.
“It was just good being back on the practice field,” Rodgers said. “Schedule hasn’t changed. Out eight weeks. Only back if it’s completely healed.”
Rodgers will be eligible to return to practice in two weeks. The earliest he could play is Dec. 17 against the Carolina Panthers, but the Packers obviously aren’t going to risk Rodgers re-injuring himself. They’re also content to let the situation play out, as there’s no guarantee Brett Hundley can keep the team in playoff contention. Linebacker Clay Matthews alluded to that.
“I think if we’ve got to wait until Week 15 or something like that, but, for a guy who just had surgery several weeks ago, you wouldn’t be able to tell that he had surgery,” Matthews said. “We’ve still got to wait, but it’s good to see. At the same time, we’ve still got to hold up our end of the bargain and steal a few wins throughout these next several weeks in hopes that we’ve got a shot with him coming back. We started with one last week. Hopefully we can get another one this week.”
When you read some of the reported details about Rodgers’ injury, you get a sense of how serious the fracture is. The Packers want to win this year if they have a chance to do so, but they need to be smart and think long-term.
