GREEN BAY — While losing your Super Bowl- and NFL MVP-winning quarterback — for however long Aaron Rodgers turns out to be sidelined with a broken collarbone — is certainly bad news, that wasn't the only kind of news the Green Bay Packers received on the injury front on Tuesday.
There was, believe it or not, some good news, too.
Four-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker Clay Matthews, sidelined since breaking his right thumb against Detroit on Oct. 6, had the pins removed from the thumb on Monday morning and will practice this week wearing a club cast. He could play Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lambeau Field if all goes according to plan.
"Clay he's going to try to go this week as far as the practice," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said Tuesday, one day after the team's 27-20 loss to the Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field. "He's going to be wearing the club. Those things are all customized and so forth, (so) they're different for every guy. We'll see how it goes in practice."
Matthews had the pins inserted into his thumb the day after the injury occurred. He has said last week when talking with reporters that he hoped to play against the Eagles but that the doctors would make that call.
Asked how the doctors felt about Matthews' progress, McCarthy replied: "They feel very good about where Clay is right now."
Meanwhile, McCarthy acknowledged that starting right guard T.J. Lang, who was diagnosed with a concussion, could be hard-pressed to play against the Eagles because of the quick turnaround after the Monday night game.
"T.J. Lang obviously suffered the concussion. We are on a short week," McCarthy said. "It's like every injury. It's the responsibility of the medical staff to go through the protocol, and make sure T.J. is where he needs to be. We don't take chances with those types of things, so how long it takes, I do not know that."
Rookie linebackers Andy Mulumba (ankle) and Sam Barrington (hamstring) also left Monday night's game with injuries. While Barrington was placed on season-ending injured reserve, McCarthy sounded hopeful that Mulumba would be OK.
"They feel good about where Andy is. (He's) better today than when he came off the field," McCarthy said. "I'm not exactly sure where he is, but they felt better about it."
Jason Wilde wrote: