GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) -Stopping a third-string quarterback is one thing. Now the Green Bay Packers’ depleted defense must face Peyton Manning.
The Packers (3-3) came into the season hoping that a strong defense would lead them into the post-Brett Favre era. Instead, they’ve struggled through a string of injuries, finally snapping a three-game losing streak at Seattle last Sunday.
Of course, it didn’t hurt that they were facing third-stringer Charlie Frye instead of Matt Hasselbeck. They’ll get no such break in Sunday’s game against the Indianapolis Colts (3-2) at Lambeau Field.
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Help is on the way for the Packers, but it likely won’t arrive by Sunday.
Cornerback Al Harris is close to returning from a spleen injury, but has been ruled out for Sunday’s game. Safety Atari Bigby returned to practice late this week after missing four games with a hamstring injury, but is doubtful for Sunday.
Defensive end Cullen Jenkins is out for the year, and two backup defensive ends are banged up, too. Pickett is nursing a triceps injury, and linebacker A.J. Hawk and cornerback Charles Woodson are playing with nagging injuries.
And here’s more bad news for the Packers: Manning and the Colts finally are playing like themselves again.
“Last week, for the first time, I saw us play our type of game, where we did play with a lot of energy, we were clicking on all cylinders,” Colts coach Tony Dungy said. “And it’s been a long time. It really has. Maybe since late in the 2007 season. Hopefully, it’s a sign of things to come.”
Manning had surgery – two, actually, as he admitted this week – to fix an infected bursa sac in his left knee in the offseason. He struggled out of the gate, and the Colts lost two of their first three.
But Manning has been impressive in October. The Colts rallied from 17 points down for a fourth-quarter win at Houston, and Manning threw for three touchdowns in Sunday’s 31-3 victory over Baltimore.
and we still need to do it every single week,” Manning said. “So it’s about executing every week. I think on Sunday against Baltimore, we protected the ball better, didn’t have any turnovers, and were able to execute some third downs and hit some plays down the field.”
A major reason for Manning’s resurgence: continuity on the offensive line. For the first time this season, the Colts used the same starting line two weeks in a row.
But Indianapolis’ running game is still sputtering – and now short-handed.
Pro Bowl running back Joseph Addai is expected to miss Sunday’s game after hurting his hamstring, and rookie Mike Hart is out for the season with a knee injury. Former 1,000-yard rusher Dominic Rhodes is expected to carry the load against the Packers.
And despite all the injuries, the Packers still have a dangerous pass defense. Woodson is tied for the league lead with four interceptions, and Harris’ replacement, Tramon Williams, has an interception in three straight games.
“They are aggressive with a lot of bump-and-run coverage and man-to-man type coverage,” Manning said. “They really challenge you. They’re in the right places and it makes you have to execute your offense and run your plays. You don’t see anybody running wide open because of a busted coverage.”
acks in NFL history. Manning doesn’t take the streak for granted, especially after the surgeries.
“I’ve never taken for granted the opportunity to be out there, to be able to play every Sunday,” Manning said. “It’s such a physical game. I’ve never taken it for granted, but certainly I think it does reinforce just the opportunity being special to be able to go out there and play.”
Manning has high praise for Packers starter Aaron Rodgers, who has played two straight games with a sprained right shoulder that has largely kept him out of practice.
“I think it says a lot about his toughness and his will to be out there when you have an injury, especially when you’re dealing with a shoulder, to be out still there playing,” Manning said. “So that’s a credit to him and his toughness.”
Rodgers doesn’t want to be singled out for praise because so many of his teammates are playing through injuries, too. As a quarterback and new leader of the team, Rodgers says he’s just doing what’s expected.
“You need to be out there on the field every Sunday,” Rodgers said. “I think guys know in this locker room, everybody’s dealing with some level of pain, injury. But playing with pain and being effective with pain I think is pretty admirable and you can’t help but respect that.”
gs, who is leading the league with 653 yards receiving.
But the Packers haven’t been particularly successful in the running game, and will have a chance to turn that around against a defense that struggles to stop the run.
Indianapolis is expected to play without safety Bob Sanders, the 2007 Defensive Player of the Year, and starting cornerback Kelvin Hayden.
Dungy said the Colts can’t use Sanders’ absence as a crutch – and they haven’t lately. Since beginning their fourth-quarter comeback against Houston two weeks ago, the Colts have forced a whopping eight turnovers and allowed only three points in their last four-plus quarters of play.
“I think there’s way too much emphasis on that, especially when we’re not playing well. And I told the team that,” Dungy said. “We can take the approach that Bob Sanders would fix everything and if he was in the lineup everything would be fine, but that’s not the case. Bob can do his job, but it’s an 11-person defense, and when we’re all humming and playing well like we were last week, you know, we held a pretty good running team to about 50 yards rushing without Bob Sanders. So it’s really a matter of everybody doing their job.”
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