Packers’ offensive line dilemma finally reaches a turning point, while Matthew Golden’s status leaves some room for optimism
Travis Glover has been ruled out of the Panthers game with a knee injury, and Green Bay may finally start Kevin Zeitler at right guard.
The Green Bay Packers will have a new-look offensive line against the Carolina Panthers, and the injury concerns don’t stop there. The Packers released their final injury report on Wednesday ahead of the Week 8 “Thursday Night Football” game against Carolina, and they ruled out three players.
It wasn’t necessarily a surprise to see linebacker Zaire Franklin on that list, since he was already expected to miss the game with a shin injury. The other two absences hit the offensive line. Right guard Travis Glover is out with a knee injury, and center Sean Rhyan is out with a high-ankle sprain.
Whether the coaching staff ideally wanted it or not, this may finally be the week when we see Kevin Zeitler at right guard. The alternatives would be moving Aaron Banks or Laken Tomlinson to the right side, or one of Donovan Jennings and Mekhi Becton.
Interior of the offensive line becomes the biggest question
Green Bay is still weighing whether to place Rhyan on injured reserve because of his ankle injury. At this point, it’s unclear which direction the team will go. The Packers already placed backup center Jacob Monk on IR. As a consequence, Green Bay is thin in terms of options in the middle of the line.
The starter against the Panthers will be one of two players: John Williams, who took over at center after the first few snaps of the Detroit Lions game, although he’s originally a tackle; or Jager Burton, a fifth-round rookie who was a healthy scratch against the Lions.
The projected offensive line looks like this: Jordan Morgan at left tackle, Laken Tomlinson or Aaron Banks at left guard, Williams or Burton at center, and Anthony Belton at right tackle.
Right guard is where it gets more intriguing. With Glover sidelined, the Packers could finally turn to Kevin Zeitler after four games with Glover in that spot. That’s a lot of moving parts for a unit that needs to communicate on every snap, especially on a short week.
Matthew Golden trending in the right direction
The Packers also listed four players as questionable, and one name stands out above the rest. There is now hope that wide receiver Matthew Golden can play.
Green Bay didn’t practice on Monday and held walkthroughs on Tuesday and Wednesday, so the participation reports are all estimations. Golden was listed as a non-participant on Monday and Tuesday because of shoulder and foot injuries. On Wednesday, though, he was upgraded to limited, and he’s officially questionable.
The Packers remain hopeful their starting wide receiver can suit up. Golden has been fantastic in his second season despite some costly drops, and losing him would create a big issue for the passing game. Christian Watson would be the only reliable wide receiver left, even with Savion Williams back and playing relatively well.
Beyond Watson and Williams, the other receivers on the 53-man roster are undrafted rookie J. Michael Sturdivant, Bo Melton, and punt returner Coleman Owen, who was promoted from the practice squad last week.
Defensive line and secondary
The other three questionable players all come from the defensive front. Defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt suffered an ankle injury against the Lions, but he returned to that game. He was listed as limited on both Tuesday and Wednesday. Based on that, the expectation is that Wyatt will play on Thursday.
Fellow defensive tackle Anthony Campbell is also dealing with an ankle injury. He did not participate on Monday before being listed as limited on Tuesday and Wednesday. Edge defender Brenton Cox is the late addition. He wasn’t on the injury report on Monday, but he suffered a quadriceps injury and was limited on Tuesday and Wednesday.
On a more positive note, the two other players who appeared on the injury report earlier in the week are now off it. Guard Aaron Banks, who was dealing with knee and toe injuries, was a full participant on Wednesday. Cornerback Benjamin St-Juste is also healthy after missing the past two games with a hamstring injury. He’ll be part of the cornerback depth against the Panthers.
Other side
