The Packer Pundit

Woodson Has Toughed It Out Before
In just his 1 1/2 seasons in Green Bay, cornerback Charles Woodson already has established a reputation for playing through injuries, and that will certainly be put to the test again this week. Woodson injured his big toe on a long punt return in Thursday's game in Detroit, and Head Coach Mike McCarthy didn't have any further update on Friday, other than to say he's getting treatment for the swelling and the medical staff will have a better idea of where he stands as the week progresses. McCarthy obviously hopes Woodson is healthy enough to help defend the Dallas passing attack next week, but he also said he wouldn't make the decision to activate or de-activate an injured player based on the magnitude of a regular-season game. [More]


Packers Sign S Underwood; Place DT Cole On I.R.
The Green Bay Packers have signed safety Marviel Underwood and placed defensive tackle Colin Cole on injured reserve. Ted Thompson, Executive Vice President, General Manager and Director of Football Operations, made the announcement Sunday. Underwood, originally a fourth-round pick by Green Bay in 2005, spent two seasons with the Packers. He saw action in all 16 games in 2005 and spent all of 2006 on injured reserve. He will wear No. 43. Cole had seen action in seven games this season and collected 13 tackles before suffering an arm injury Nov. 22 at Detroit. The Packers also announced a practice squad transaction Sunday. The team signed cornerback Joe Porter to the practice squad and released safety Tristan Burge. Porter, a 5-foot-10, 198-pound rookie from Rutgers, played in 44 games, including 11 starts, for the Scarlet Knights. He also participated in track, where he was the 2006 BIG EAST indoor and outdoor 200-meter champion.


Empty Texas road
Packers seeking first victory in Dallas since 1989
Mike McCarthy likes to use the first team meeting of the week to head off any storylines that might affect the mind-set of his team. So when McCarthy stood in front of the Green Bay Packers on Sunday morning, he told them not to worry about the fact that the Packers hadn't won at Texas Stadium, the site for Thursday's NFC showdown with the Dallas Cowboys, since 1989. "All you guys were in Little League when they played down there," McCarthy said.

One hand went up in the back. "Not all the guys," the man attached to the hand said. That would be quarterback Brett Favre, who has lost all eight of his starts - including three post-season games - at the stadium in Irving, Texas. Count Favre among those who will enjoy seeing it razed in favor of the Cowboys' new home in Arlington for the 2009 season. "I was hoping that it would be gone before I got back there," Favre said. "I know we haven't had much success down there. (Former Cowboys quarterback) Troy (Aikman) and I talk about that every time he does one of our games. But there's always going to be the next time that you play that's going to be different." [More]


McCarthy reveals little about injuries
Late last week, USA Today ran a story on the front page -- of the entire paper, not just the sports cover -- on the less-than-truthful approach NFL teams take with their injury reports. Well, the Green Bay Packers didn't lie about their injuries Sunday. They didn't have to, because they didn't have to issue an official injury report at all in advance of Thursday night's showdown with the Dallas Cowboys. [More]