Classic Packers: Starks over Harris
By Kevin Seifert
Here's some interesting news from the Green Bay Packers: Running back James Starks, who hasn't played football since 2008 because of a variety of injuries, was added to the 53-man roster Tuesday.
Given Starks' long absence from game-speed contact, most of us assumed he would spend the rest of the season on the Packers' reserve list. But depth concerns at tailback after the Week 1 loss of starter Ryan Grant presumably spurred this move.
Starks missed his senior season at Buffalo because of shoulder surgery, but the Packers liked his potential and took a sixth-round flyer on him in the draft. They placed him on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list when training camp began because of a hamstring injury, but he has spent the past three weeks practicing with the team.
I have my doubts about the level to which Starks is ready for an NFL game. And you have to wonder how he earned a roster spot when the Packers couldn't find one for veteran cornerback Al Harris in a year when the Packers have a legitimate opportunity to make a Super Bowl run. But as we noted Monday, that's the way the Packers do business. In other words: Young players > old players.
To make room for Starks on the roster, the Packers waived linebacker Robert Francois.