MILWAUKEE (AP) — Another week, another round of injuries for the Green Bay Packers.
This week has been especially unkind for coach Mike McCarthy's offensive line, with a short turnaround from an overtime game on Sunday to face the Chicago Bears on Thursday night at Lambeau Field.
Don't look for sympathy from Bears coach John Fox. He is already down three defensive starters less than a month into the season, and the Bears are also coming off an overtime win.
"Nobody is going to come rescue us," Fox said. "I think we're playing a game Thursday night, so we'll do our best to get ready for it."
The latest installment of the NFL's oldest rivalry is a meeting between teams trying to make it to the long weekend off that follows a Thursday game without anyone else getting hurt.
By numbers alone, the Packers have had it worse, especially on the O-line. Tackles David Bakhtiari and Bryan Bulaga, one of the best tandems in the league, are on the injury report again. Kyle Murphy went on injured reserve this week, joining two other backup tackles knocked out by injuries.
Ten players are on the injury report, not including two this week placed on injured reserve. Green Bay even lost its long snapper this week.
McCarthy cut back on what was already a limited practice schedule for the short week to help players recover from Sunday.
"The No. 1 goal for our football team as far as preparing for this game is for everybody to get their bodies back," McCarthy said.
The Packers have a great equalizer in quarterback Aaron Rodgers. They're never out of a game at home as long as he's healthy, like when Green Bay came back from a 14-point halftime deficit last week to beat the Bengals 27-24 in overtime.
"Part of the puzzle is keeping our QB upright and that's the most important thing," Packers offensive coordinator Edgar Bennett said.
Chicago lost safety Quintin Demps to a broken arm last week. The Bears have also lost linebacker Jerrell Freeman and Freeman's replacement, Nick Kwiatkoski, to pectoral injuries.
The win over the Steelers does offer a confidence boost in a short week after holding Pittsburgh to 282 yards.
"I know they've had their share of injuries as well across the board," Fox said. "On the short week, obviously it's a challenge for both sides. But it starts with Aaron and he always makes things interesting."
