More Injury Woes For The Green Bay Packers

Added on Oct 13, 2010 by Jason Kearney in

NFL

As if the Green Bay Packers didn’t have enough problems following the concussion suffered by starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers, things have taken a turn for the worst with a couple of potential season ending injuries to key players. Tight end Jermichael Finley and linebacker Nick Barnett had surgery this week and could be out for the year.

Finley’s loss is a real blow for an offense that had already been struggling with consistency. He was arguably Aaron Rodgers most dependable target and had 301 yards receiving and a touchdown so far in 2010. He injured his knee in the overtime loss at Washington and the initial diagnosis was 3 weeks on the shelf. Instead, surgery was required and the new ‘best case scenario’ is 8 to 10 weeks out of action. Barnett injured his wrist against Detroit the previous week and although he’s not ‘officially’ been placed on injured reserve most injury reports indicate he’s ‘out for the year’.

Doctors advised Finley to have his torn meniscus surgically repaired rather than removed entirely. The good news is that the longterm prognosis is much better, but it requires a longer short term recovery period. The team is now deciding whether to put him on IR, which would shut him down for the season or keep him on the roster hoping he could return for a potential playoff run. In any case, he’s out until at least December. Packers’ coach Mike McCarthy said that putting Finley on injured reserve is ‘definitely an option’ but that the team won’t rush to make a decision. He further suggested that no decision would be forthcoming until at least next week.

Even before the injuries to Finley and Barnett, the Packers’ injury report looked like a hospital admissions record. Rodgers is still listed as ‘questionable’ with the concussion he suffered in the loss to the Redskins, and as the week progresses it looks less likely that he’ll play. He hasn’t practiced this week. Running back Ryan Grant and cornerback Al Harris are gone for the year. Linebacker Clay Matthews has a hamstring strain though he’s been upgraded to ‘probable’ for Sunday’s game against Miami. Tight end Donald Lee has a sprained chest muscle and won’t play this week. Defensive lineman Ryan Pickett has a sprained ankle (though it’s listed as a ‘knee’ injury on the NFL injury report) and won’t play this week. Safety Derek Martin was played on the IR list today, ending his season.