Packers Update Status of Josh Myers After 1st-Half Injury

Josh Myers Injury Update

Getty Josh Myers #71 of the Green Bay Packers is helped off the field in the first half against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on October 17, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

The return of Green Bay Packers rookie center Josh Myers may be short-lived.

Myer was cleared to play in Week 6 against the Chicago Bears after missing last week’s win with a finger injury, but he went down hard during the Packers’ first series and was taken out of the game with a knee injury. While the Packers initially listed him as “questionable” to return, they ruled him out officially in the second half with Lucas Patrick set to continue as their center for the remainder of the game.

Myers has been a valuable — and necessary — addition for the Packers this season after veteran Corey Linsley was not retained during 2021 free agency, allowing six pressures but no sacks through his first four games as a starter. He did, however, emerge from their season-opening loss to New Orleans with a finger injury that has since kept him on the injury report and cost him a start in Week 5.

Patrick did a solid job with pass-blocking and snapping in relief of Myers against the Bengals, but his run-blocking performance was notably below standard. The Packers will need a more complete effort from him to close out against the Bears and potentially longer if Myers’ knee forces him to miss additional time.

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Preston Smith, Darnell Savage Also Injured

Myers might’ve been the first of the Packers’ key contributors knocked out of Sunday’s game in Chicago, but at least two more were injured before the middle of the third quarter. Outside linebacker Preston Smith exited early in the second half with an oblique injury, while safety Darnell Savage Jr. was later taken out to be evaluated for a concussion after tackling Bears running back Khalil Herbert and hitting his head on Herbert’s knee.

Both Smith and Savage have been listed as questionable to return.

With Smith out of the game, Jonathan Garvin and La’Darius Hamilton have both gotten extended looks at outside linebacker and delivered some good reps. Garvin recorded the Packers’ first sack of the day when he brought down Justin Fields on the sideline on third-and-9 to kill the drive for the Bears.

Meanwhile, Henry Black replaced Savage in the secondary alongside Adrian Amos and had tallied four solo tackles at the midway point in the fourth quarter.


Return of Jenkins Offers Multiple Backup Plans for Myers

The Packers are probably still a few days away from discussing the extent of Myers’ knee injury, which might not even be fully diagnosed at this point. If it turns out the rookie center will have to another game, though, there are a couple of different ways the Packers could go about replacing him in the lineup.

Patrick would be the obvious choice as the next man up who has placed him in two games now. While he has primarily played at guard during his time with the Packers, he isn’t new to making spot starts at center. He also did so during the 2019 season when Linsley was forced to miss time with an injury. Patrick’s versatility is no doubt useful to the Packers, but it doesn’t necessarily mean he is the best option available.

The Packers might also choose to go with Jenkins, who has played excellent snaps at just about every position on the offensive line during his first two and a half years in the NFL. He is currently filling in for David Bakhtiari at left tackle, but Bakhtiari is eligible to come off the physically unable to perform (PUP) list for the first time in Week 7. If he returns to his usual spot at left tackle, Jenkins would be freed up to play center.

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