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Lewis, Bojorquez Clear COVID Protocols, Will Play vs. Vikings

Five members of the Green Bay Packers got the green light to play on Sunday, led by tight end Marcedes Lewis and punter Corey Bojorquez.
Bill Huber|
Lewis, Bojorquez Clear COVID Protocols, Will Play vs. Vikings
Lewis, Bojorquez Clear COVID Protocols, Will Play vs. Vikings

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Punter Corey Bojorquez, tight ends Marcedes Lewis and Tyler Davis, offensive lineman Ben Braden and inside linebacker Oren Burks cleared COVID protocols on Sunday and will be eligible to play for the Green Bay Packers against the Minnesota Vikings.

All five were activated from the COVID list, with the Packers benefiting from the CDC’s revised guidance recommending a five-day isolation instead of the previous 10 days.

“Yeah, absolutely,” coach Matt LaFleur said of the team’s good fortune that the league’s protocols changed at the same time his team was hit by numerous COVID cases. “We lost quite a few guys and, hopefully, we’ll have these guys back for Sunday.”

Lewis, despite being the oldest tight end in the NFL at age 37, has started 27 consecutive games. That’s the longest streak in the league among tight ends by a considerable margin; Chicago’s Cole Kmet is second with 18 consecutive starts. His physical presence as a blocker could be critical if the weather is too cold to throw the ball effectively.

With a bigger role in the passing game in the absence of Robert Tonyan, Lewis has caught 23-of-27 passes for 214 yards. The previous three seasons combined, Lewis caught 28-of-40 passes for 305 yards. Of 50 tight ends to have been targeted 25 times this year, Lewis ranks ninth with 6.5 yards after the catch per catch, according to Pro Football Focus. He’s forced nine missed tackles, his most since 11 with Jacksonville in 2013.

“A gorilla. I’d probably say a gorilla because it’s just powerful, fast, it’s a little unpredictable, pretty athletic,” receiver Davante Adams said of Lewis’ YAC ability. “I like to say a gorilla is athletic and just big, man. You see a gorilla running at you – I have not been chased by one yet – but if I do, got to get out the way. He’d be able to sidestep me, run me over, hurdle me, do whatever he needs to do because I don’t want no part of that, and I kind of feel like that’s how the defenses feel with him out there.”

Bojorquez ranks eighth in the league in average (47.4) and 15th in net average (40.8). If not for one bad game against Chicago last month, he’d be in the top five in net average. The Packers have won the net-punt battle in most games this season. Plus, he’s the holder on the ascending extra-point/field-goal unit. After a seven-game stretch in which Mason Crosby made only 12-of-21 extra points, he’s made all 13 kicks the past three games.

On Saturday, the Packers elevated receiver/returner David Moore and defensive lineman Abdullah Anderson from the practice squad. With Amari Rodgers out with COVID, Moore could be the returner.

Moore (6-0, 219) was a seventh-round pick by the Seattle Seahawks in 2017. In 2019, he averaged 7.5 yards on 10 punt returns; in 2020, he averaged 9.3 yards on 12 returns with a long of 20. He muffed one kick in each of those seasons (total of 46 chances, including fair catches). He also has four career kickoff returns with a 16.5-yard average.

“He does have a skill-set and, when he’s ready to rock and roll, I’m sure he’ll get the green light,” special teams coordinator Maurice Drayton said on Thursday.

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Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.

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