Rodgers Confirms He Has Broken Thumb

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will face the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday while playing with a broken thumb on his throwing hand.

Author:
Bill Huber
Updated:
Nov 23, 2022 10:03 PM EST
Original:
Nov 23, 2022

In this story:

Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers confirmed on Wednesday that he’s been playing with a broken right thumb the last six games.

Rodgers suffered the injury on the failed Hail Mary on the final play of the loss to the Giants in London on Oct. 9 when he was hit from behind by Oshane Ximines. While Rodgers hasn’t used the injury as an excuse and didn’t on Wednesday, it was that play that perhaps is most responsible for the Packers carrying a 4-7 record into Sunday night’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

“I think I’ve had worse injuries I’ve played with,” Rodgers said after practice. “So, you know, definitely a challenge, but the days off helped, feeling better this week.”

Rodgers said he was in pain on the flight back from London. He didn’t want to get an X-ray – “I was still going to play, didn’t matter what the X-ray showed” – but was talked into it. He hasn’t considered surgery and didn’t think it would require offseason surgery.

After the loss to the Titans in which he was uncharacteristically off-target, Rodgers refused to use the injury as an excuse. During his weekly appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday, Rodgers said he missed a couple throws that he hits “99 out of 100 times.” After the game on Thursday, he said he “didn't have (a) consistent grip” and threw some “wobblers.”

Were those issues because of the thumb?

“I don’t think so,” he said on Wednesday. “There’s one in every 100 that doesn’t come off the right way.”

In what seemed like a season-saving victory over Dallas, Rodgers was 14-of-20 passing. Against the Titans, Rodgers was 24-of-39. Still, no excuses.

“My thumb was hurting a lot worse in the Dallas game, and I put the ball where I wanted to,” Rodgers said.

While gripping a football with a broken thumb might seem like a challenge that could lead to some inaccuracies, Rodgers said this wasn’t even the most difficult injury he’s played through from a throwing perspective.

“When I hurt my knee in ’18, you throw from the ground up, so that was definitely difficult on the footwork, plant leg,” he said. “When I broke my index finger in college, that was probably a slightly more important finger to deal with. I remember I was at practice and Coach (Jeff) Tedford said, ‘I don’t care what’s hurting. You’ve got one day off and, if you miss another day of practice, you’re the backup again.’ So, there was no choice.”

Rodgers said the injury has neither gotten better nor worse in the six weeks since the injury, though the few extra days off following the Tennessee game have helped going into this week. Rodgers has lined up in shotgun rather than under center for much of the season but said the injury wasn't the reason for that decision.

Even coming off their mini-bye, the Packers had 16 players on their injury report compared to one for the Eagles. Seven Packers didn’t practice at all, including rookie offensive tackle Rasheed Walker – one of five players hit by illness.

Linebacker De’Vondre Campbell, who suffered a knee injury at Buffalo in Week 8, remains out. He joined the linebackers on the practice field but was walking with an obvious limp.

Receiver Romeo Doubs, who suffered an ankle injury on the opening snap at Detroit in Week 9, went through the prepractice stretch but did not join the receivers on the field.

Rookie offensive tackle Caleb Jones, who made the roster as an undrafted free agent, was designated for return from the non-football injury list, where he’d been since Oct. 1.

Packers-Eagles Wednesday Injury Report

Packers

DNP: LT David Bakhtiari (knee), LB De’Vondre Campbell (knee), S Tariq Carpenter (illness), WR Romeo Doubs (ankle), S Rudy Ford (illness), LG Elgton Jenkins (knee), OT Rasheed Walker (illness).

Limited: LB Krys Barnes (hand), WR Randall Cobb (illness), CB Shemar Jean-Charles (ankle), RB Aaron Jones (shin/glute), WR Allen Lazard (shoulder), QB Aaron Rodgers (thumb).

Full: CB Jaire Alexander (groin), K Mason Crosby (illness), LB Quay Walker (shoulder).

Eagles

Limited: CB Josh Jobe (hamstring).