GREEN BAY -- Aaron Rodgers' status isn't the only issue for the Green Bay Packers on the injury front.
Four-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker Clay Matthews, who missed four games earlier this season after breaking his right thumb against Detroit on Oct. 6, re-broke the thumb Sunday and may be lost for the season.
"The training staff didn't feel very good about the injury, so we're still working through the process," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said said Monday, one day after Matthews left the Packers' 38-31 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers after injuring his thumb while sacking Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
Matthews suffered what's called a "Bennett fracture" against the Lions, and the nature of the break required him to have pins surgically inserted into the thumb. It's unclear if Matthews suffered the same type of break, although McCarthy did say the injury was "similar" to the previous one.
If that's the case, Matthews' season is likely over, even if the Packers beat the Chicago Bears Sunday at Soldier Field to win the NFC North and earn a playoff berth. Matthews did play with a club cast on his right hand when he returned to the lineup, but he was ineffective and lobbied team physician Dr. Pat McKenzie to let him play with a more traditional fiberglass cast that gave him use of his fingers to grab with.
Meanwhile, running back Eddie Lacy, who has been hobbled by a sprained right ankle since suffering the initial injury Dec. 8, hurt the ankle again Sunday and could be out, too.
"Eddie, he's sore, which he has been pretty much the whole season," McCarthy said. "We're not going to practice on the field until Thursday, so I'll probably have a better feel for where he's at."
The Packers have 16 players on injured reserve, including wide receiver Randall Cobb, who has been designated for return but has yet to be medically cleared for game action. Defensive end Johnny Jolly was the latest starter to be placed on season-ending IR on Saturday with a neck injury.
Jason Wilde wrote: