Packers-Titans Wed. Injury Report: Linsley Practices Again

Coach Matt LaFleur reconfigured the practice week so his players will get the day off on Christmas.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – If you’re a little foggy about the day of the week with Christmas on the horizon, you’re not alone.

“I don’t even know what day of the week. Today is Thursday in our world,” Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur said before Wednesday’s practice. “Tomorrow will be a Friday schedule. Actual Christmas Day, we’ll give those guys off and then we’ll modify Saturday because of the long layoff between Thursday and then playing Sunday evening, we’ll get some work in Saturday and modify that a little bit.”

Got it?

Usually, the team practices on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, with Thursday being the heavy day of the week and typically in pads. This week, with Christmas falling on a Friday, LaFleur is sending his team to the practice field on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday – that Saturday night game against Carolina having an extra payoff this week as it gets ready for Sunday night’s contest against the powerful Tennessee Titans.

On Tuesday, center Corey Linsley returned to practice, and he was back at it on Wednesday with the team in pads. He suffered a knee injury against Chicago on Nov. 29 and was placed on injured reserve. Having sat out the requisite three games, he could play against the Titans. Officially, he remains on injured reserve so is not on the injury report.

Whenever he returns, the Packers presumably would go back to their usual group of left tackle David Bakhtiari, left guard Elgton Jenkins (moved to center), Linsley, right guard Lucas Patrick (moved to left guard) and right tackle Billy Turner (moved to right guard).

“I think anytime you’ve got a guy coming off a long layoff like he’s had, you want to give him the week to kind of work through because you don’t know how somebody’s body’s going to react,” LaFleur said. “We’ll just let him work through and we will work different combinations throughout practice of different routes we could go, because at this moment, we really don’t know.”

Running back Jamaal Williams (quad), tight end Jace Sternberger (concussion), tight end Marcedes Lewis (knee but perhaps standard rest) and safety Will Redmond (concussion) did not practice. If Williams can’t play against the Titans, rookie AJ Dillon could be in line for his busiest day in terms of snaps (14 vs. Houston in Week 7) and carries (five, several times, most recently vs. Minnesota in Week 8).

Any momentum Dillon had gained was derailed after missing a month due to COVID-19. He played four snaps on special teams in his return at Detroit in Week 14 and carried once for 18 yards in his five snaps on offense vs. Carolina.

“I think AJ has got a bright future and we’ll do our best to put him in there, but a lot of it’s predicated on how the game’s going,” LaFleur said.

Sternberger, defensive lineman Anthony Rush (did not practice) and long snapper Hunter Bradley (limited) are on the injury report due to illness. Those are December-in-Wisconsin illnesses and not COVID.

Packers Injury Report

DNP: TE Marcedes Lewis (knee), S Will Redmond (concussion), DL Anthony Rush (illness), TE Jace Sternberger (concussion/illness), RB Jamaal Williams (quad).

Limited: LS Hunter Bradley (illness), OLB Rashan Gary (hip), RB Aaron Jones (toe), CB Kevin King (groin), WR Allen Lazard (core/wrist), P JK Scott (quad), OLB Za’Darius Smith (ankle/thumb/neck), WR Equanimeous St. Brown (knee). CB Chandon Sullivan (hip), RT Rick Wagner (knee).

Full: ILB Krys Barnes (eye). G Lucas Patrick (toe), OLB Randy Ramsey (neck), G Simon Stepaniak (knee), WR Malik Taylor (hamstring).

Titans Injury Report

DNP: CB Adoree Jackson (knee), RT Dennis Kelly (knee), DT Jeffery Simmons (knee).

Limited: WR A.J. Brown (ankle), C Ben Jones (knee), LB David Long (neck), CB Chris Milton (knee).

Full: LG Rodger Saffold (toe), TE Geoff Swaim (ankle), S Kenny Vaccaro (illness).