The Green Bay Packers are on the fringes of the playoff race after losing to the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving and with quarterback Aaron Rodgers out with a fractured shoulder, there is a good chance that he could be shut down for the season if his shoulder injury does not show improvement.
According to ESPN.com, Rodgers is getting scans on his shoulder Tuesday and depending on how those scans look, the team could decide to shut the quarterback down for the final stretch of the season. Rodgers has been out since getting hurt on Monday night football against the Chicago Bears and the team now has lost four of five games and they have been winless in that span, as they tied with the Minnesota Vikings after playing an overtime period. The team came into the matchup with the Bears at 5-2 and now the team is in a big slump and they have one of the toughest roads to the playoffs with a tough schedule and a number of teams ahead of them.
The Packers have a home matchup with the Atlanta Falcons before an away game against the Dallas Cowboys and then the team finishes off with the Steelers at home before heading to Chicago for the regular season finale against the Bears. The scans for Rodgers will see how his shoulder is progressing and Mike McCarthy will make a decision on whether he will play or not this week against the Falcons after the reports come in.
McCarthy said that any chance for the Packers to make the playoffs means the team must win out the rest of the schedule and if Rodgers has not progressed, the team may decide to keep him off the field for the rest of the season. Matt Flynn was ineffective against the Lions, but he may be the best option on the team if Rodgers is out. The medical staff will look at Rodgers and then McCarthy will make a decision. The Packers are still ranked in the top 10 in both passing and rushing yards per game, but they have struggled over the past five weeks without Rodgers and now the rest of 2013 may be up in the air.
"There's a lot riding on this decision,'' a source said to ESPN.com.