Key Packers Starter Didn’t Practice Friday, Likely Out for Cardinals Game

Fresh off the practice field on Friday, here’s the latest on the Green Bay Packers’ Devonte Wyatt, Lukas Van Ness, Brandon McManus and Zach Tom before their game against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.

Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) is sacked by Green Bay Packers defensive linemen Rashan Gary (52) and Devonte Wyatt. | Mark Hoffman-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers’ pass rush will not get a critical lift from defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt for Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals.

Wyatt, who missed most of the Dallas game before the bye with a knee injury, was inactive for last week’s win over the Bengals and didn’t practice at all this week.

“More than likely” he will not play, coach Matt LaFleur said before Friday's practice.

Wyatt has two sacks. Of 64 interior defensive linemen with at least 100 pass-rushing opportunities, he ranks third in pass-rush win rate, according to Pro Football Focus.

On Fridays, reporters only get to see the players go through their opening stretch and warmup. Of the players on offense and defense, Wyatt and Lukas Van Ness were the only players on the roster who did not go outside for practice.

With Wyatt and Van Ness nursing injuries, the Packers almost certainly will be without two of their impact defensive linemen for Sunday. Van Ness missed all three practices this week due to a foot injury sustained on the team’s one and only sack last week. In fact, he wasn’t even seen by reporters this week.

How will the Packers overcome their absence?

“Hopefully, they’ll be back and, if they’re not, we’ll continue to roll those guys,” defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley said after Thursday’s practice. “I thought (defensive tackle Barryn) Sorrell did a nice job when he came in the game. I thought (defensive tackle Warren) Brinson played more snaps; I thought he did a nice job in the game.

“We’ll continue to rely on those guys to play. Like I said, we’ve got to develop those guys and get them snaps and, hopefully, we’ll get those other guys out there.”

Kicker Brandon McManus, who was inactive last week against Cincinnati due to a quad injury, usually practices on Wednesday and Friday. He didn’t practice this Wednesday and was not expected to kick on Friday, either.

“We’ll see how he’s feeling and go from there,” LaFleur said. “But, as of right now, to my knowledge, I wouldn’t anticipate that.”

As a 12th-year pro who has kicked in 176 games, McManus has kicked long enough that he could get the green light against Arizona. But his absence on Friday would indicate that Lucas Havrisik might kick for a second consecutive game.

While McManus didn’t think he needed to kick on Friday to be ready for Sunday, special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia didn’t necessarily agree.

“I just have a personal belief, to some degree, that in order to kick, you have to kick,” he said after Thursday’s practice. “Not a lot of balls, but we kick two days a week going into the game, and we have a guy that’s played a lot of football and, to some degree, has been through this.

“We’ll see what tomorrow looks like. Lucas will definitely kick tomorrow (Friday), and we’ll see what it looks like for Brandon.

Havrisik made all five kicks against the Bengals, including a field goal that essentially clinched the win.

“He had a great workout, first of all, and he’s got a big leg” Bisaccia said. “We got to the pregame and Brandon went out there, kicked in pregame. The ball looked better as time went on. But just being around him now for enough time to feel like, I just didn’t think he was ready. I think he could have played in his mind, but we just didn’t want this thing to be a long-term issue.”

Receiver Christian Watson on Friday completed his second week of practice following last year’s torn ACL. Could he be active and play at Arizona?

“We’ll see. We’ll see how he gets through today,” LaFleur said.

In Arizona, Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon said rookie defensive tackle Walter Nolen and running back Emari Demercade would not play this week. Like the Packers with Watson, Nolen is practicing in the return-to-play window after missing the first six weeks with a calf injury.

“Everybody else we'll see in the next 48 hours how it goes,” Gannon said. That means quarterback Kyler Murray (foot) and receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. (concussion) probably will be listed as questionable.

The #Packers and #Cardinals revealed their final injury reports of the week a little while ago. Here’s the latest for Devonte Wyatt, Lukas Van Ness, Josh Jacobs, Brandon McManus, Zach Tom, Kyler Murray and Marvin Harrison Jr. ⬇️https://t.co/WEU5F3HKYA

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) October 17, 2025

The final injury reports of the week will be revealed after Friday’s practice. For now, here are the reports from Thursday.

Packers Injury Report

Did not participate: K Brandon McManus (quad), DE Lukas Van Ness (foot), DT Devonte Wyatt (knee).

Limited: LG Aaron Banks (groin/knee), OT Anthony Belton (ankle), RB Josh Jacobs (illness), C/G Jacob Monk (hamstring), T/G Jordan Morgan (knee), RT Zach Tom (oblique/hip), WR Christian Watson (knee), WR Dontayvion Wicks (ankle).

Full: DT Warren Brinson (abdomen, neck), WR Matthew Golden (shoulder).

Off the injury report: S Javon Bullard (concussion evaluation).

Monk and Watson remain on injured reserve and are within his 21-day practice windows.

Cardinals Injury Report

Did not participate: S Kitan Crawford (ankle), RB Emari Demercado (ankle), WR Zay Jones (knee).

Limited participation: CB Darren Hall (quad), WR Marvin Harrison (concussion), QB Kyler Murray (foot), DT Walter Nolen (calf), DT Darius Robinson (pectoral).

Full participation: OT Kelvin Beachum (rest), LB Akeem Davis-Gaither (foot), RB Zonovan Knight (knee), S Dadrion Taylor-Demerson (ankle), WR Michael Wilson (foot).

Off the injury report: DT Bilal Nichols (rest).