Lloyd had scans done to his hamstring since yesterday’s injury report
Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur clarified at the start of his press conference on Thursday that rookie running back MarShawn Lloyd, who returned to practice on Wednesday, is not believed to have a hamstring issue — which was indicated yesterday on the injury report — after the running back went through recent medical scans. Lloyd was placed on the injured reserve with an ankle injury, but he’s also battled through hamstring issues dating back to the preseason opener this summer.
With Lloyd’s practice window open, the Packers have a little under three weeks now to decide whether or not to activate Lloyd to the 53-man or allow him to revert to the injured reserve for the remainder of the season. Currently, Green Bay has an open roster spot because the team traded away defensive end Preston Smith to the Pittsburgh Steelers at the trade deadline.
When asked about that open roster spot, LaFleur gave mixed answers. First, he mentioned that Lloyd could potentially be a player who fills that roster spot, but the coach did note that he doesn’t remember the last time the Packers kept four true running backs on its roster. Emanuel Wilson has been the primary backup to Josh Jacobs this season, but he’s seen some of those snaps go to Chris Brooks in recent weeks. If Lloyd is activated, it wouldn’t be surprising to see either of Wilson or Brooks as the odd man out at this point.
Another option that LaFleur said is on the table is adding some potential defensive line depth to the 53-man roster following the Smith trade. On top of that, defensive tackle has been down a man in practice the last two days as Colby Wooden (shoulder), the former fourth-round pick, has been the only player who has been a non-participant in practice this week. This leaves the Packers with five defensive ends and just four defensive tackles.
Internal options for potential practice squad elevations on the defensive line are defensive end Deslin Alexandre, defensive tackle James Ester and defensive tackle Jonathan Ford. None of these players have ever played a regular season game for the Packers, but Ford was drafted by the team back in 2022. As a rookie, Ford was able to stick on the 53-man roster for the entirety of that season, but he was a healthy scratch throughout the year.
Aside from Lloyd, the other limited participants in Packers practice today were cornerback Jaire Alexander (knee), defensive tackle Kenny Clark (toe), running back Josh Jacobs (quadricep), left guard Elgton Jenkins (undisclosed), center Josh Myers (wrist), safety Evan Williams (hamstring) and guard Jordan Morgan (undisclosed). All but Jenkins and Morgan were featured on Wednesday’s injury report, meaning those are the only new injuries. Alexander, Myers and Williams were inactive against the Detroit Lions before the Packers took their bye week, meaning their participation in Friday’s practice will be a big tell for whether or not they’ll be ready to go against the Chicago Bears on Sunday.