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November 16th, 2013
GREEN BAY—Even though Aaron Rodgers returned to the practice field on Tuesday, his chances of playing Thursday moved away from slim and “closer to none,” according to Head Coach Mike McCarthy, as Matt Flynn took the starter’s reps during the Packers’ jog-through workout.
“It does not look like Aaron is going to make it,” said McCarthy, explaining that Rodgers did only individual drills to hit some “targets” in his rehab. “He had a good day. This was a big day actually for him. He feels good, but I don’t think he’s going to make it this week. This is a medical decision and he’s not quite ready.”
That didn’t stop Rodgers’ teammates from getting a bit of a lift, just seeing him back in his customary red No. 12 practice jersey inside the Don Hutson Center.
“It was motivating to see ‘12’ out there today,” tight end Andrew Quarless said. “That’s our leader. He was running around, cracking jokes, same A-Rod. He definitely brings the right energy back to practice.”
So what do his teammates think of Rodgers’ chances to play?
“I would be surprised,” receiver Jordy Nelson said, before cracking a smile. “Nothing wrong with being surprised, though.”
That said, it’s almost certain the ball will go to Flynn at Ford Field, the same stadium in which he had a very rough but valuable regular-season debut off the bench three years ago. McCarthy admitted on Tuesday he “pushed the envelope too much” with Flynn in that game, and the former seventh-round draft pick and national championship QB at LSU was a different player the following week at New England and the following year against Detroit again, which represented his two previous NFL starts for the Packers.
His recall of McCarthy’s offense has been swift since returning to Green Bay less than a month ago, and he’s still hitting the playbook hard.
“I feel good with the playbook, feel good with the game plan. I feel ready to go,” Flynn said. “I’m light years ahead of where I would be three weeks into any other system, obviously, just because of the time I spent here.”
