Packers Myers will Play, Bakhtiari Questionable & Other Injury Updates
By Paul Bretl
This Green Bay Packers team is continuing to get healthier at the right time. Just a few days after returning to practice, Matt LaFleur told reporters on Friday that Josh Myers will play against Detroit.
Myers has been on IR since Week 6, when he left the game on the first drive with a knee injury that eventually was operated on.
Myers would miss Green Bay’s matchup against Cincinnati but was the starting center in the other four games played prior to his injury. According to PFF ($$), Myers allowed no sacks, six pressures, and ranked 20th out of 33 centers in run-blocking grade.
The question now becomes, who starts at center during the playoffs? Myers displayed a lot of promise in his limited playing time, while Lucas Patrick has experience on his side and has been playing some of his best football as of late.
More good news for the Green Bay Packers
In addition to Myers being back, we learned that David Bakhtiari still has the opportunity to play on Sunday after being listed as a full participant at Friday’s practice. Green Bay will see how he feels on Saturday and give him up until kickoff to show that he’s able to play. Either way, this is a good sign for the playoffs.
On the flip side, we still won’t see Randall Cobb or Jaire Alexander. LaFleur told reporters that Cobb could still benefit from the two additional weeks before Green Bay’s first playoff game, while Friday was Alexander’s first day back at practice after being on the reserve/COVID list.
Upon Cobb’s return, he will provide Aaron Rodgers with another trusted third down and red zone target—two areas where Cobb has really shined this season. Meanwhile, Alexander’s return will give Green Bay plenty of options at the cornerback position, and could create some difficult decisions when it comes to playing time and roles—which, of course, is a good problem to have.
LaFleur also added that new return man David Moore will be out as well as he is still on the reserve/COVID list, which means Amari Rodgers will be returning punts and possibly kicks. We may also see more of him on offense as well.
Even though it was just a one game sample size, you have to think that Moore will be the return man in the playoffs, given his track record and how reliable he looked against Minnesota.
This Green Bay Packers team has been incredibly resilient in overcoming injuries this season, and now with the playoffs right around the corner, they appear poised to get several key contributors back.