Fresh off a tough road trip to Arizona that led to a thrilling win over the Cardinals, the Green Bay Packers now have to turn around and prepare for another tough road trip, this time to Acrisure Stadium in primetime for a Sunday Night Football matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
That matchup will come against former star quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who makes his first career start against the Packers, aiming to achieve NFL history in the process with a win.
Though very few Packers remain on the roster that played with him, limiting the storyline, it’s still a huge game for both. And the Packers enter it with some injury issues.
The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman tweeted out the injury report for the Packers just moments ago.
PACKERS’ WEEK 8 WEDNESDAY INJURY REPORT
DNP
OLB Lukas Van Ness (foot)
K Brandon McManus (quad)
WR Dontayvion Wicks (calf)
LIMITED
DL Devonte Wyatt (knee)
OL Aaron Banks (groin)
OT Anthony Belton (ankle)
CB Nate Hobbs (knee)
RB Josh Jacobs (calf)
S Xavier McKinney (ankle/knee)
S Evan Williams (back)
OT Zach Tom (oblique)
WR Christian Watson (knee — remains on IR)
FULL
LB Quay Walker (neck)
OT Jordan Morgan (knee)
Pass rusher Lukas Van Ness missed the game against the Cardinals with a foot injury, so his status for Week 8 against the Steelers is up in the air. On the season, he has 1.5 sacks and has been a dynamic pass rusher, pairing with Micah Parsons and Rashan Gary to generate significant problems for opposing offenses. If he can’t go, that will limit the rotation the Packers can utilize off the edge against the Steelers.
Running back Josh Jacobs has been on the injury report for a few weeks now, but continues to play through any issues. He remains a great running back, too, scoring two touchdowns in each of the last three games. He provides the Packers tremendous balance on the ground and through the air. He’s a player the Steelers under head coach Mike Tomlin are very worried about, as they should be.
Green Bay also might need to make a decision at kicker this week. Though Lucas Havrisik set a franchise record with a 61-yard field goal in Arizona, Brandon McManus is working back from the quad injury and could be close to getting back into his role.
He was limited late last week before the Cardinals matchup, but as head coach Matt LaFleur explained during his press conference, McManus didn’t kick on Wednesday.
The pair of starting safeties, Xavier McKinney and Evan Williams, being limited early in the week with ailments is worth monitoring. The starting duo has been outstanding to start the season and is a big reason why the Packers have kept a lid on things defensively through the first seven weeks of the season.
The other name worth monitoring is wide receiver Christian Watson, who remains on Injured Reserve with a knee injury suffered last season. His 21-day window opened Oct. 6, and if the Packers activate him from IR, he should theoretically make his return on Sunday Night Football. He could be a real boost to Green Bay’s passing attack.
