GREEN BAY — In the end zone, the celebration was in full swing. Eddie Lacy was getting hugs and handshakes and high-fives from wide receivers Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Davante Adams, along with tight end Richard Rodgers — all of whom had been downfield blocking for Lacy at the end of his 56-yard touchdown catch-and-run.
About 25 yards away, though, was Aaron Rodgers. While the Green Bay Packers quarterback was thrilled for Lacy, he had some other kudos to hand out: To the offensive linemen who'd paved the way for the screen pass to turn into the Packers' fifth touchdown in what would end up being a 55-14 rout of the Chicago Bears.
Namely: Guard T.J. Lang and Josh Sitton, who were out front for Lacy despite playing with painful injuries that had held them out of practice all week.
"Those guys are such warriors. To be able to play those injuries and play really well was impressive," Rodgers said on his weekly radio show on 540 ESPN and ESPNWisconsin.com . "All week, you weren't sure if they were going to be ready. They didn't practice, they didn't really go through the walk-throughs but, to those guys' credit, they stayed dialed in and they knew the plan and they were ready to play and they played really well and we were able to get up enough points to get them some rest."
It certainly helped Sitton and Lang that they didn't have to play the entire game against the Bears, but it didn't help them enough to keep them off the injury report and on the practice field Wednesday, in advance of this week's game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lambeau Field.
Neither Lang, who injured his ankle against New Orleans in the Packers' pre-bye loss on Oct. 26, and nor Sitton, who tore a ligament in his left big toe in that game, practiced Wednesday, and coach Mike McCarthy suggested that they may follow the same protocol this week as they did last week. That means they will likely play against the Eagles without having taken a single snap in practice.
Before playing against the Bears, Sitton acknowledged that he knew the story of Packers wide receiver Sterling Sharpe, who had such an painful case of turf toe during the 1993 season that he wouldn't practice all week and then play on Sunday. That went on for most of the second half of the season .
"I'd rather practice, but if that's what it takes, that's what it takes," Sitton said. "I can do it."
Lang said he would rather practice as well — "That's where I gain a lot of confidence throughout the week," he said — but also said that in his case, he'd hope that not practicing would only be a temporary solution.
"You've just got to make a wise decision. The last thing you want to do is beat it up in practice and be sore all week," he said. "I'd rather make sure I'm increasing the percentage of getting better day by day. If that's playing a limited role, then that's what it takes.
"Major, in my mind, is something that requires immediate surgery. Everybody's got some pains and aches this time of year. Obviously, you want to make a smart decision. If you feel like you can't do the job as well as the guy behind you, it's probably a wise decision not to play. [But] you've got to play through some pains sometimes. It comes down to a little bit of a pride thing, of not wanting to let your teammates down by not being out there."
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