GREEN BAY, Wis. — It’s a fairly thin roster—particularly on the defensive side of the ball—for the Green Bay Packers. They’ll carry just 50 players into their Sunday night bout with the Dallas Cowboys with four scratches.
Three of them—Aaron Banks, Jager Burton, and Donovan Jennings—are offensive linemen. The fourth is Benjamin St-Juste.
It’s the fourth consecutive game missed for Banks, who missed the second half of the Sept. 20 win over the New York Jets with a toe injury. The first half of that game has been his only action on the field this season. He already entered the year hindered by tendinitis in his knee, forcing Banks to operate on a day-on, day-off schedule throughout training camp.
Banks has been present at practice for four consecutive days, dating back to Oct. 9. It’s unclear if he truly hasn’t been cleared to play yet, or if the Packers are sending a message about the status of their left guard position. Laken Tomlinson, who was signed Sept. 28, has started the last two games and performed well.
Of the four players ruled out on Friday’s final injury report, three of them were placed on injured reserve: Javon Hargrave, Jonathan Ford, and Skyy Moore. St-Juste, who is battling a hamstring injury for the third time since training camp, could see himself land there soon if the Packers decide to provide him with an opportunity to get fully healthy. Hargrave suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in the Oct. 11 win over the Chicago Bears, Ford is being shut down due to a calf injury, and Moore exited the same game with an ankle injury.
Head coach Matt LaFleur didn’t believe Moore’s injury was going to be a long-term issue, but he’ll now miss the Packers’ next four games. The soonest he’ll be eligible to return is the team’s Nov. 15 game at Lambeau Field versus the Minnesota Vikings.
The Packers had 52 players on their active roster before the flurry of transactions on Friday. They activated Savion Williams from injured reserve, positioning the former third-round pick to make his season debut Sunday night.
There was some uncertainty surrounding the status of Brandon Cisse, but he’ll be in the defensive lineup against the Cowboys. The rookie cornerback was added to the Packers’ injury report on Friday with a hip issue, which was worth monitoring anyway, let alone before a matchup against arguably the best receiving tandem in the league in CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens.
INACTIVES
CB Benjamin St-Juste (Hamstring)
OG Jager Burton (Healthy)
OG Aaron Banks (Knee/Toe)
OG Donovan Jennings (Healthy)
Zachary Jacobson is the author of The Packer Dispatch. He is entering his 12th season covering the Green Bay Packers after spending seven as the Editor-in-Chief of Packer Report. He is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America. Follow him on Twitter @zachjacobson or contact him via email at itszachariahj@gmail.com.