The Green Bay Packers need players to begin stepping up. The team is in an offensive skid right now and a part of it is because so many players are missing in action. To make matters worse, some players on the field are dealing with issues slowing down their play. Davante Adams admits that while it has not caused his dropped passes lately, an ankle injury is hurting his production on the field. Is the issue serious for one of the lone healthy receivers on the field?
According to Adams via the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, an ankle injury continues to linger and hurt his time on the field. Both Adams and Randall Cobb have not been healthy this season and it is holding the offense back as they miss Jordy Nelson. Adams missed time for the injury earlier in the year, but understands that the Packers cannot afford to have him sit out any more games this season.
"I don't know the severity of it or how he feels about it," Cobb said, via JSOnline.com. "I don't think he's looked like the same Davante. He hasn't been playing as fast as he normally does. I think it still bothers him. My shoulder has been bothering me, too, but y'all don't care about that. Nobody cares about that. They care about wins and losses, and we're not winning right now."
Cobb is right to say that nobody cares because right now the Packers need them more than ever. The team simply cannot afford to have either player miss a game as they remain in the hunt for the postseason. To make matters worse for the Packers, ESPN.com is reporting that Ty Montgomery is likely out for the season. The rookie wide receiver stepped up as a starter when Nelson went down, but an ankle injury has kept him off the field since mid-October. The receiver is not making progress on the injury which means the Packers' offense is dealing with yet another season-ending issue.
One bit of good news for the team is the return of Andrew Quarless. The tight end has also been out with injury and on the injured reserve list. He returned to practice Monday and now the Packers have two weeks to determine if he takes the field this season. Quarless believes it is realistic to think that he gets on the field this week against the Lions as the Packers could really use a boost on offense.
It was good to get him out there," coach Mike McCarthy said, via ESPN.com. "I think any time a player is out of the competition environment, as he's been, [it's good]. He's been working exclusively in the rehab and the workouts and things like that. You have to get your feet back underneath you, you have to get your game legs, and I think you saw some of that."
In his place, Richard Rodgers has made very little impact on the field. Quarless could help spark things but he certainly is not a quick fix to the issues. Aaron Rodgers made some public statements calling out the team's preparation and work ethic. Now fans must wait and see how everyone responds.