The Green Bay Packers plan to stand pat with Richard Rodgers and Justin Perillo at tight end -- for now -- with the hope that Jared Cook will return on the early end of the 4-to-6-week window that’s being projected for his ankle injury.
“That’s the plan as I stand here today,” coach Mike McCarthy said Wednesday.
Cook sprained his right ankle in Sept. 25 game against the Detroit Lions. During last week’s bye, the Packers consulted noted foot/ankle specialist Dr. Bob Anderson, who performed last year’s surgery on Packers receiver Ty Montgomery, and confirmed that Cook should be able to return without surgery.
Fantasy Impact:
When Cook exited early in Week 3, Rodgers played a season-high 80% of the snaps. Rodgers was the #9 TE last year in standard formats (#11 in PPR), so he's a serious threat for TE1-type numbers while Cook is out. Boosting his chances of hitting pay dirt, with Aaron Rodgers under center the Packers have averaged 2.71 pass touchdowns at Lambeau since 2014.