Packers-Patriots Injury Report: LaFleur Looks Back (Not Forward) in Adjusting Practice
GREEN BAY, Wis. – Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur doesn’t want to talk about next week’s game in London. Period.
Asked how the team’s maiden trek overseas would impact this week’s practices for the game against the New England Patriots, LaFleur said, “Nothing. Nothing. You look ahead in this league, you get your ass whipped. Bottom line.”
Clearly, LaFleur’s had to look ahead. It would be coaching malpractice not to take into account the long flight to London and the 8:30 a.m. Green Bay time kickoff for next week’s game against the New York Giants, along with the return trek to host the New York Jets a week later. On Wednesday, pointing to the strenuous workload of previous weeks and the impact of Sunday’s victory in sweltering Tampa Bay, LaFleur held a job-through practice rather than the usual full-pads session.
“Coming off of what we came off of, kind of the cumulative effect of all the practice, our player loads are quite high for where we are right now,” LaFleur said before practice. “Just thought it would be best to just use today as more a jog-through tempo.”
So, it’s probably not worth putting a great deal of stock into Wednesday’s injury report. To be sure, it was noteworthy to see left tackle David Bakhtiari at practice. Bakhtiari played 35 snaps against Tampa Bay, his first game since Jan. 9, 2022, at Detroit and his second game since suffering a torn ACL at practice on Dec. 31, 2020.
It also was good to see cornerback Jaire Alexander looking spry through the warmup line, too, after he suffered a groin injury on the opening series Sunday and didn’t return. LaFleur called Alexander “day to day.”
Right tackle Elgton Jenkins and backup Caleb Jones were the only players to not practice for the Packers. On Thursday, the status of Jenkins and Bakhtiari could be flip-flopped.
Receiver Christian Watson (hamstring), who was inactive for his Tampa homecoming, practiced as limited participation. New to the injury report was running back AJ Dillon (knee).
Alexander, Bakhtiari, Dillon, Watson and Allen Lazard were among seven players listed as limited participation.
Packers-Patriots Wednesday Injury Report
Packers
DNP: RT Elgton Jenkins (knee), OT Caleb Jones (illness).
Limited: CB Jaire Alexander (groin), LT David Bakhtiari (knee), RB AJ Dillon (knee), OLB Jonathan Garvin (hip), WR Allen Lazard (ankle), TE Marcedes Lewis (groin), WR Christian Watson (hamstring).
Patriots
DNP: DL Lawrence Guy (shoulder), QB Mac Jones (ankle).
Limited: S Joshuah Bledsoe (groin), OL Yodny Cajuste (thumb), S Kyle Dugger (knee), DL Davon Godchaux (back), LB Raekwon McMillian (thumb), WR Jakobi Meyers (knee), CB Jalen Mills (hamstring), S Adrian Phillips (ribs).
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