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Packers FB Henderson might miss three to six weeks
Written by: Pete Dougherty ¦ 8/20/2006
Source: www.greenbaypressgazette.com
Venerable fullback William Henderson might miss three to six weeks because of the knee injury he sustained in the Green Bay Packers' exhibition game against Atlanta on Saturday night.
A source familiar with the situation said Henderson was scheduled to undergo more extensive tests either later Sunday or today, after the swelling in his knee subsides, to better determine the extent of the injury.
But the initial diagnosis by the Packers' medical staff is that he has cartilage and perhaps ligament damage that will sideline him for at least three weeks and probably a little longer. That means he would miss the regular-season opener Sept. 10 and, depending on the severity of the injury and his ability to bounce back at 35, at least a couple of more games as well.
If further tests confirm the Packers' suspicions, then Vonta Leach probably will be the Packers' starting fullback for the next few weeks. Leach has had a good training camp as a blocker but has been inconsistent catching the ball, and that carried over to the Packers' 38-10 exhibition win over Atlanta on Saturday night. Leach blocked much better than the 35-year-old Henderson, but he also dropped a pass in the flat that probably would have gone for a 9-yard touchdown.
Leach, a third-year pro, is in a tight battle for the one or two roster spots that likely will go to a fullback. At 6 foot and 250 pounds, he's a prototypical ram-rod fullback, but the Packers' new zone-blocking scheme favors smaller, more agile players at that position, because they're better at hitting moving targets and also can be emergency halfbacks.
However, Leach is the best blocking back on the roster and becomes more valuable with Henderson out and perhaps diminished for the rest of the year by the injury. Leach started five games last season, when he caught five passes for 19 yards. He's also been a core player on special-teams the last 1 ? seasons.
"We try to weigh everything," General Manager Ted Thompson said of evaluating Leach so far in camp. "We look at the whole body of work, we don't get too worked up about one dropped pass. We'll play the best guys we've got. Vonta's played a lot of football here."
The other two fullbacks on the roster are undrafted rookies Ben Brown (6-1, 246) and A.J. Cooper (6-1, 240).
The Packers also played backup halfback Noah Herron at fullback occasionally during offseason practices, but he hasn't worked there much during training camp, and at only 224 pounds it's still questionable whether he's big enough to be anything but an emergency player there. Najeh Davenport, who started at halfback in place of Ahman Green on Saturday night, played fullback in college, but durability and blocking deficiencies make him a poor candidate for that position in the NFL.
Thompson said Sunday afternoon he didn't have enough information to provide an update on Henderson's condition. It's unclear exactly when Henderson sustained his injury Saturday night. He was on the field when tight end Bubba Franks caught a caromed pass for a 3-yard touchdown that tied the game 7-7 with 3:04 left in the first quarter, but then Leach was at fullback the Packers' next offensive series.
"I couldn't tell you when (he was injured)," Thompson said. "He might have done it early and kept playing for a while."
Henderson was a free agent this past offseason, and the Packers decided to engage in a bidding skirmish with Minnesota to bring him back for a 12th year in the NFL. He signed a two-year deal with the Packers that paid a $250,000 roster bonus plus a workout bonus of $105,720. His base salary this season is $810,000.
The Packers considered him worth that modest up-front risk because even though his blocking has been slipping he's declined with age, he's been a surprisingly effective receiver and an excellent locker-room presence. Last year, he caught 30 passes for an average of 8.8 yards a reception.
Henderson has struggled more than ever with his blocking during training camp, including in Saturday night's game before he was injured. He still was a decent bet to make the final roster because of intangibles, and presumably will remain so unless his injury is even more severe than the Packers suspect.
"He missed a few blocks in the game (Saturday night), but it's a preseason game," Thompson said.
Until this injury, Henderson also had been remarkably durable. In his previous 11 years in the NFL, he missed only two games, one in his first game as a rookie because he was coming back from arthroscopic knee surgery, and the other in 2002 because of a strained medial-collateral ligament in his right knee. That ended his streak of playing in 114 straight games (126 counting playoffs). He hasn't missed a game since, but now his status in doubt for the regular-season opener against Chicago and perhaps a handful of games thereafter.
There goes my theory on the Running Back situation. Hope Leach starts catching the ball.
Written by: Pete Dougherty ¦ 8/20/2006
Source: www.greenbaypressgazette.com
Venerable fullback William Henderson might miss three to six weeks because of the knee injury he sustained in the Green Bay Packers' exhibition game against Atlanta on Saturday night.
A source familiar with the situation said Henderson was scheduled to undergo more extensive tests either later Sunday or today, after the swelling in his knee subsides, to better determine the extent of the injury.
But the initial diagnosis by the Packers' medical staff is that he has cartilage and perhaps ligament damage that will sideline him for at least three weeks and probably a little longer. That means he would miss the regular-season opener Sept. 10 and, depending on the severity of the injury and his ability to bounce back at 35, at least a couple of more games as well.
If further tests confirm the Packers' suspicions, then Vonta Leach probably will be the Packers' starting fullback for the next few weeks. Leach has had a good training camp as a blocker but has been inconsistent catching the ball, and that carried over to the Packers' 38-10 exhibition win over Atlanta on Saturday night. Leach blocked much better than the 35-year-old Henderson, but he also dropped a pass in the flat that probably would have gone for a 9-yard touchdown.
Leach, a third-year pro, is in a tight battle for the one or two roster spots that likely will go to a fullback. At 6 foot and 250 pounds, he's a prototypical ram-rod fullback, but the Packers' new zone-blocking scheme favors smaller, more agile players at that position, because they're better at hitting moving targets and also can be emergency halfbacks.
However, Leach is the best blocking back on the roster and becomes more valuable with Henderson out and perhaps diminished for the rest of the year by the injury. Leach started five games last season, when he caught five passes for 19 yards. He's also been a core player on special-teams the last 1 ? seasons.
"We try to weigh everything," General Manager Ted Thompson said of evaluating Leach so far in camp. "We look at the whole body of work, we don't get too worked up about one dropped pass. We'll play the best guys we've got. Vonta's played a lot of football here."
The other two fullbacks on the roster are undrafted rookies Ben Brown (6-1, 246) and A.J. Cooper (6-1, 240).
The Packers also played backup halfback Noah Herron at fullback occasionally during offseason practices, but he hasn't worked there much during training camp, and at only 224 pounds it's still questionable whether he's big enough to be anything but an emergency player there. Najeh Davenport, who started at halfback in place of Ahman Green on Saturday night, played fullback in college, but durability and blocking deficiencies make him a poor candidate for that position in the NFL.
Thompson said Sunday afternoon he didn't have enough information to provide an update on Henderson's condition. It's unclear exactly when Henderson sustained his injury Saturday night. He was on the field when tight end Bubba Franks caught a caromed pass for a 3-yard touchdown that tied the game 7-7 with 3:04 left in the first quarter, but then Leach was at fullback the Packers' next offensive series.
"I couldn't tell you when (he was injured)," Thompson said. "He might have done it early and kept playing for a while."
Henderson was a free agent this past offseason, and the Packers decided to engage in a bidding skirmish with Minnesota to bring him back for a 12th year in the NFL. He signed a two-year deal with the Packers that paid a $250,000 roster bonus plus a workout bonus of $105,720. His base salary this season is $810,000.
The Packers considered him worth that modest up-front risk because even though his blocking has been slipping he's declined with age, he's been a surprisingly effective receiver and an excellent locker-room presence. Last year, he caught 30 passes for an average of 8.8 yards a reception.
Henderson has struggled more than ever with his blocking during training camp, including in Saturday night's game before he was injured. He still was a decent bet to make the final roster because of intangibles, and presumably will remain so unless his injury is even more severe than the Packers suspect.
"He missed a few blocks in the game (Saturday night), but it's a preseason game," Thompson said.
Until this injury, Henderson also had been remarkably durable. In his previous 11 years in the NFL, he missed only two games, one in his first game as a rookie because he was coming back from arthroscopic knee surgery, and the other in 2002 because of a strained medial-collateral ligament in his right knee. That ended his streak of playing in 114 straight games (126 counting playoffs). He hasn't missed a game since, but now his status in doubt for the regular-season opener against Chicago and perhaps a handful of games thereafter.
There goes my theory on the Running Back situation. Hope Leach starts catching the ball.
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