The No. 1 seed in the NFC is officially clinched, but neither Aaron Rodgers nor Davante Adams is looking to take a week off and relax in Week 18. In fact, both the Packers stars want to play in Detroit against the Lions.
Rodgers. who threw a pair of touchdown passes in the Packers’ 37-10 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, went as far as to say he’s expecting to play in the season finale.
“I’m going to play next week. I expect Davante to play, and our guys to play. We look forward to finishing off the season on a high note, and then getting the bye,” Rodgers said Sunday night.
Rodgers, the MVP favorite, said his fractured left pinky toe is “feeling good” and he thinks the injury could be 100 percent healed by the time the Packers host the divisional round later this month. He also believes he’ll practice again this coming week, potentially on both Thursday and Friday.
Adams isn’t dealing with an injury, but he also wants to play, especially with a week off coming during the first round of the postseason.
“Having two weeks off is, to each his own, but I wouldn’t want to do it. I want to play next week, at least some,” Adams said. “We’ll see the plan we come up with, but I’m definitely preparing to go out there and play. I want to get out there and run around, for sure.”
Adams joked he wanted to play in part to break Jordy Nelson’s single-season team record for receiving yards. He needs 22 yards to set the new mark.
Ultimately, the decision will be Matt LaFleur’s.
The Packers coach will talk with Rodgers, Adams, the rest of the players and the staff before deciding, but he’s leaning towards everyone playing in Detroit.
“That does seem like a long time off. We’ll play it by ear. We’ll have conversations tomorrow with our staff, we’ll definitely have talks with our players. We’ll make the best decision for us. But if you asked me right now, I’d say my gut is these guys are going to play at least a little bit next week.”
There will be risks to playing Rodgers and Adams and other key players. An injury during an inconsequential game could hurt the Packers’ chances in the postseason. But there arfe also risks in sitting players for too long and coming out flat when the games matter again in the postseason.
“You kind of have to weigh everything, and then make the best decision for your football team,” LaFleur said.
The Packers and Lions will kickoff from Ford Field at noon on Sunday. Later this month, Green Bay will host the lowest remaining seed in the NFC in the divisional round.