Category Archives: Practice Squad

20

December

Packers Sign T Herb Taylor; Derek Sherrod to IR

Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson announced Tuesday that the team had signed tackle Herb Taylor to replace first-round pick Derek Sherrod on the Packers active roster. As expected, Sherrod was placed on IR.

Sherrod, the No. 32 overall pick in the 2011 draft, broke his leg Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs and remained in Kansas City to have surgery. It was learned yesterday that Sherrod broke both the tibia and fibula in his right leg, which means he’ll miss the rest of this season and potentially some of the next. Recovery time for such an injury is obviously extensive.

Taylor was drafted in sixth round by the Chiefs in 2007 and appeared in 18 games, including one start, from 2007-08. Taylor made the Denver Broncos active roster at the end of ’09 before training camp stints with the New York Giants in ’10 and Broncos again in ’11. Taylor had a work out with the Packers in early December, according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

In college, Taylor (6-4, 305) started 48 games at TCU and twice earned First-Team All-Mountain West honors.

He’ll wear No. 72.

19

December

McCarthy: Bryan Bulaga Has Sprained Knee Cap, Unlikely to Play Sunday

Bryan Bulaga is unlikely to play Sunday with a sprained knee cap.

Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy said Monday that right tackle Bryan Bulaga suffered a sprained knee cap against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday and will be “challenged to play” against the Chicago Bears this week.

Bulaga suffered the injury in the first half and was helped to the locker room for evaluation. He returned to the sidelines in the second half but was unable to play. McCarthy said the injury happened to the same knee he sprained earlier in the season but was a different injury. McCarthy couldn’t provide specifics on what exactly a “knee cap sprain” was, either.

If Bulaga can’t go on Sunday, it’ll likely be T.J. Lang who again plays at right tackle with Evan Dietrich-Smith shifting to left guard. The Packers lined up this way after first-round pick Derek Sherrod broke his leg in the second half. McCarthy confirmed that Sherrod already had surgery in Kansas City and is in good spirits. He’ll miss the rest of the season and it’s not unreasonable to think his playing status for early 2012 could be in question.

16

December

McCarthy: Bishop and Pickett Out; Starks, Sitton and Saine Questionable for Sunday vs. Chiefs

During his Friday press conference, Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy ruled out both Desmond Bishop and Ryan Pickett for Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs but said that James Starks, Brandon Saine and Josh Sitton all have a chance to play.

Bishop and Pickett have both been held out of practice this week. Bishop will miss his third straight game after injuring his calf against the Lions in Week 13. Pickett suffered his second concussion of the season against the Raiders last Sunday and won’t make the trip to Kansas City.

Rookie D.J. Smith will make his third straight start for Bishop, and C.J. Wilson is listed behind Pickett on the Packers depth chart. Jarius Wynn and Mike Neal should also see more snaps in Pickett’s absence.

Both Starks (injury) and Saine (concussion) have missed this week’s practices, but McCarthy said they’ll be game-time decisions. If they checkout on the field in Kansas City before kickoff, each will have a chance to play. The Packers are hopeful that one of the two will be able to play, as Ryan Grant and John Kuhn are the only other healthy ball carriers on the roster. No roster move was made to fortify the position this week.

15

December

Packers WR Tori Gurley Turns Down Minnesota Vikings, Receives Raise

Gurley turned down the Vikings to stay with the Packers.

Green Bay Packers receiver Tori Gurley has turned down an active roster spot on the Minnesota Vikings to stay in Green Bay at a higher salary, according to Rob Demovsky of the Green Bay Press Gazette.

AllGreenBayPackers.com reported on Monday about the possibility of Gurley being promoted to the Packers’ active roster after a source confirmed that Gurley and the Packers were in negotiations for a salary bump.

AllGBP also reported that an unnamed team had put in a claim for Gurley, which certainly helped in the negotiations for Gurley’s raise.  Combined with the fact that the Packers had just lost Greg Jennings for 2-3 weeks, the possibility was there for Gurley to be activated from the practice squad.

While it’s still possible that Gurley could be added to the active roster in the coming days or weeks, Gurley remains on the practice squad at this time.

According to Demovsky, Gurley turned down the offer in part because the Vikings’ season has just three games left but also for the fact that he’s learning the position from the best group of receivers in the NFL. As Demovsky quoted Gurley, “The grass isn’t always greener on the other side.”

12

December

Source: Packers Likey To Activate WR Tori Gurley Soon

According to a source, Gurley will be promoted to the Packers' active roster soon.

According to a source close to the situation, the Green Bay Packers are working on promoting rookie receiver Tori Gurley from the practice squad to the active roster in the coming days.

The source, speaking on terms of anonymity, said that the Packers are working on a deal to pay him money in the range of an active player. Combined with Greg Jennings’ injury that will keep him out 2-3 weeks, there’s a good chance that the Packers could activate Gurley sometime before Green Bay takes on the Kansas City Chiefs this Sunday.

Gurley had an extended talk with both quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Packers coaching staff on Monday and came away from the meetings encouraged about the upcoming situation, the source said. That would help explain Gurley’s tweet about an hour before McCarthy’s press conference on Monday that said “God works in mysterious ways ;- ) Go Pack Go.”

The source also said that another team was in talks to claim Gurley off the Packers practice squad. The team wasn’t named, but that likely helped give Gurley even more leverage to get onto the active roster.

7

December

Packers Send Andrew Quarless to IR, Promote Graham Harrell

The Green Bay Packers have placed tight end Andrew Quarless on IR with a knee injury and promoted quarterback Graham Harrell to take his place on the active roster.

Quarless was hurt in the second half of the Packers’ 38-35 win over the New York Giants on Sunday. It was a horrific looking injury as Quarless’s knee buckled while attempting to cover a kickoff. Coach Mike McCarthy said that Quarless will have surgery on the knee in the coming days or weeks.

Harrell has been primarily on the Packers’ practice squad during his two years in Green Bay. After spending the first 13 games there last season, Harrell was signed to the active roster for the final three games after Aaron Rodgers suffered a concussion against the Detroit Lions.

Harrell earned another chance on the practice squad with a preseason that saw him complete 33 of 57 passes for 287 yards and two touchdowns.  While learning under Rodgers, Matt Flynn and quarterbacks coach Tom Clements, Harrell has shown vast improvements since the Packers signed him in May of 2010.

31

October

Packers Promote RB Brandon Saine from Practice Squad

The Green Bay Packers signed rookie running back Brandon Saine from the practice squad to the 53-man roster after placing fellow rookie back Alex Green on IR, GM Ted Thompson announced Monday. The Packers also signed safety Anthony Levine and offensive lineman Paul Fenaroll to the practice squad and Cecil Newton was released.

The need for promoting Saine arose when Green tore his ACL in the first quarter of the Packers 33-27 win over the Minnesota Vikings in Week 7. The injury occured when Randall Cobb tripped into the back of Green’s legs during a kick return. Mike McCarthy announced last Monday that Green would be lost for the season.

A third-round pick from Hawaii, Green had just three carries for 11 yards and one catch for six yards in limited snaps this season. Depending on when surgery for the injury occurs, Green should be a full-go for 2012.

Saine (5-11, 220) was signed as an undrafted free agent on July 28 and won himself a spot on the Packers practice squad by rushing for 51 yards during the preseason. He was a second-team All-Big Ten selection at Ohio State his senior year. He will wear No. 33.