Rodgers says he will play Sunday
QB suffered calf strain in final regular season game
UPDATED 10:35 AM EST Jan 08, 2015
Mike Blake/Reuters
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GREEN BAY, Wis. —If head coach Mike McCarthy planted any seed of doubt a short time earlier Wednesday, the man of the hour, the day and the week for the Green Bay Packers provided the definitive answer.
"I'm going on Sunday," quarterback Aaron Rodgers asserted at his Lambeau Field locker. "It's just a matter of how."
Rodgers continued to be on the mend with a strained left calf. It has kept him off the field since his valiant return in the second half after aggravating the injury earlier in the game to lead Green Bay to an NFC North-clinching win over the Detroit Lions on Dec. 28.
Rodgers didn't practice Wednesday, when Green Bay (12-4) started its on-field preparations for the divisional playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys (13-4) at Lambeau on Sunday.
"Well, I plan on Aaron playing Sunday," McCarthy said. "(Wednesday's) schedule was for him to stay exclusively in the training room. There's still some things that he needs to work through. So we'll see what (Thursday) brings, if he'll be able to practice. It's day to day, but everything points in the direction of him playing."
Since McCarthy didn't speak with deep conviction about Rodgers' availability for Green Bay's most important game to date, skepticism ensued about just how ready the presumptive NFL MVP is for game action again. That Rodgers wasn't cleared by team doctor Pat McKenzie to get on the field Wednesday raised the uncertainty meter.
Having Rodgers involved in practice Thursday wasn't ruled out. Short of that, however, he would have only what amounts to a jog-through for the team Saturday morning with no practice Friday to get any on-field reps before the game.
McCarthy insisted Rodgers hasn't experienced a setback with the injured lower leg.
"I think he's making the progress," McCarthy said. "(But) it's never enough for Aaron. I think the training staff feels good about it. We feel confident in the direction we're going."
What's more, McCarthy reaffirmed his faith in Rodgers that what could amount to almost two full weeks of not practicing won't hinder the veteran leader in carrying out the offensive game plan.
"Mentally, he's right on top of it," McCarthy said.
For his part, Rodgers is cautiously optimistic that he will be fully functional behind center Sunday, when temperatures are expected to be in the teens.
"We'll see," Rodgers said. "It's Wednesday. So, hopefully, (the calf) keeps progressing."
If Rodgers is restricted with his mobility during the game and can't make some of his signature deep throws, the potency of Green Bay's offense won't necessarily be diminished.
Fortunately for the Packers, rugged running back Eddie Lacy is healthy entering the postseason and stands to be a major component of McCarthy's game plan, depending on where things stand with Rodgers.
"Eddie was injured at the end of (last) year, played the last four or five games with a bad ankle," McCarthy said. "Eddie was in a boot all week and then played on Sundays at this time last year. He feels better. He's a better football player, in my opinion, this year than last year."
An effective Lacy could be just what the second-seeded Packers need to not only pick up a gimpy Rodgers but offset facing the league's top rusher in DeMarco Murray and avoid an upset loss to the third-seeded Cowboys.
Lacy's 1,139 rushing yards and three 100-yard games paled in comparison with Murray's team-record 1,845 rushing yards and 12 100-yard games during the regular season. Yet while Murray played with a broken hand late in the season, Lacy gained steam in the final weeks as the weather turned playoff-like cold in Green Bay.
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