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GREEN BAY – Green Bay Packers all-purpose man Bo Melton will not be available for the playoffs.
Coach Matt LaFleur said the knee injury Melton suffered against the Minnesota Vikings on Jan. 4 was bad enough that the club will place him on injured reserve.
LaFleur said Melton didn’t suffer a torn ACL, but the injury was significant enough that he would miss at least four games, which is the minimum he must sit out under injured-reserve rules.
“That’s a big loss for us,” LaFleur said in his pre-practice press conference Jan. 7. “(He’s) just a Swiss army knife. There’s nothing he can’t do. I wouldn’t put it past him. I just love the energy he brings to our football team, a great competitor.
“The moment is never too big. He can make plays in all three phases. It’s unfortunate but somebody else is going to have to step up.”
Melton’s biggest contribution has been on special teams, where he returns kickoffs and plays on the punt return and coverage units. He has played on 45.6% of the special teams snaps and finished with four tackles. He averaged 24.6 yards on 19 kickoff returns, serving as both a complement and as a replacement for rookie Savion Williams.
Though he spent most of the offseason and training camp transitioning from receiver to cornerback, Melton’s contribution wound up being mostly offense. He played 96 snaps on offense compared to one snap on defense.
He caught four passes for 107 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown in the first meeting with the Chicago Bears, who host the Packers in the first-round of the playoffs Jan. 10.
The Packers won’t be able to replace Melton’s return ability or role as a gunner and jammer on the punt units, but they could be getting back a key piece of their special teams unit.
Linebacker Nick Niemann, who ranks fourth on the team with 11 special teams tackles despite missing the last 10 games with a pectoral injury, may be activated from injured reserve.
The Packers have an open roster spot with Melton going to injured reserve.
Niemann returned to practice Dec. 31 and will have had two full weeks of practice going into the Bears game.
After being inactive for four weeks, rookie nose tackle Nazir Stackhouse got a chance to start in the Packers’ regular-season finale against the Vikings and played well enough to be in contention for a spot on the gameday roster.
The 6-foot-4, 327-pound Stackhouse played 45 of the 67 snaps against the Vikings and helped eat up blockers in the run game. He also had a few plays where he put pressure on the quarterback, including a near sack of Max Brosmer.
“It’s a competition,” LaFleur said of getting on the field. “I thought he did a lot of great things, just playing with good pad level, using his hands, staying square in the run game. We’ve got a great challenge in front of us in that same regard (against the Bears).”
Stackhouse will be competing with Jonathan Ford, the 6-5, 338-pound former Chicago Bear, who played 30 snaps against the Vikings. Ford was claimed on waivers last week after the Bears cut him.
Rather than see whether practice squad quarterback Clayton Tune could play better than he did against the Vikings, the Packers elevated veteran Desmond Ridder to the 53-man roster Jan. 6.
LaFleur said the Packers coaches have a good feel for his game.
“He’s a guy that we probably had a little bit more exposure to,” LaFleur said. “He’s played more games. I know he just got here, however, he is accustomed to a lot of the terminology that is found in our offense. He was with (senior assistant) Luke) Getsy with the Raiders and he has been spending a lot of time with (quarterbacks coach) Sean Mannion.
“He’s been picking it up pretty well.”The Packers signed Ridder to the practice squad before the Vikings but did not elevate him to the gameday roster.
This article originally appeared on Packers News: Packers will place all-purpose player Bo Melton on injured reserve
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Coach Matt LaFleur said the knee injury Melton suffered against the Minnesota Vikings on Jan. 4 was bad enough that the club will place him on injured reserve.
LaFleur said Melton didn’t suffer a torn ACL, but the injury was significant enough that he would miss at least four games, which is the minimum he must sit out under injured-reserve rules.
“That’s a big loss for us,” LaFleur said in his pre-practice press conference Jan. 7. “(He’s) just a Swiss army knife. There’s nothing he can’t do. I wouldn’t put it past him. I just love the energy he brings to our football team, a great competitor.
“The moment is never too big. He can make plays in all three phases. It’s unfortunate but somebody else is going to have to step up.”
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Melton’s biggest contribution has been on special teams, where he returns kickoffs and plays on the punt return and coverage units. He has played on 45.6% of the special teams snaps and finished with four tackles. He averaged 24.6 yards on 19 kickoff returns, serving as both a complement and as a replacement for rookie Savion Williams.
Though he spent most of the offseason and training camp transitioning from receiver to cornerback, Melton’s contribution wound up being mostly offense. He played 96 snaps on offense compared to one snap on defense.
He caught four passes for 107 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown in the first meeting with the Chicago Bears, who host the Packers in the first-round of the playoffs Jan. 10.
Special teams ace Nick Niemann could return this week
The Packers won’t be able to replace Melton’s return ability or role as a gunner and jammer on the punt units, but they could be getting back a key piece of their special teams unit.
Linebacker Nick Niemann, who ranks fourth on the team with 11 special teams tackles despite missing the last 10 games with a pectoral injury, may be activated from injured reserve.
The Packers have an open roster spot with Melton going to injured reserve.
Niemann returned to practice Dec. 31 and will have had two full weeks of practice going into the Bears game.
Nose tackle Nazir Stackhouse might have done enough to earn role in playoffs
After being inactive for four weeks, rookie nose tackle Nazir Stackhouse got a chance to start in the Packers’ regular-season finale against the Vikings and played well enough to be in contention for a spot on the gameday roster.
The 6-foot-4, 327-pound Stackhouse played 45 of the 67 snaps against the Vikings and helped eat up blockers in the run game. He also had a few plays where he put pressure on the quarterback, including a near sack of Max Brosmer.
“It’s a competition,” LaFleur said of getting on the field. “I thought he did a lot of great things, just playing with good pad level, using his hands, staying square in the run game. We’ve got a great challenge in front of us in that same regard (against the Bears).”
Stackhouse will be competing with Jonathan Ford, the 6-5, 338-pound former Chicago Bear, who played 30 snaps against the Vikings. Ford was claimed on waivers last week after the Bears cut him.
Familiarity played a role in Packers going with Desmond Ridder over Clayton Tune
Rather than see whether practice squad quarterback Clayton Tune could play better than he did against the Vikings, the Packers elevated veteran Desmond Ridder to the 53-man roster Jan. 6.
LaFleur said the Packers coaches have a good feel for his game.
“He’s a guy that we probably had a little bit more exposure to,” LaFleur said. “He’s played more games. I know he just got here, however, he is accustomed to a lot of the terminology that is found in our offense. He was with (senior assistant) Luke) Getsy with the Raiders and he has been spending a lot of time with (quarterbacks coach) Sean Mannion.
“He’s been picking it up pretty well.”The Packers signed Ridder to the practice squad before the Vikings but did not elevate him to the gameday roster.
This article originally appeared on Packers News: Packers will place all-purpose player Bo Melton on injured reserve
Continue reading...
