Jake Ryan enjoyed a breakout 2017 season, but the fourth-year linebacker may not have a chance to build on it. At least, not right away.
While it’s not certain just yet, the Packers fear one of their starting inside linebackers suffered a “significant and potentially season-ending” right knee injury, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reports. Pro Football Focus’ No. 19 overall linebacker last season, Ryan suffered this setback during an 11-on-11 drill at Packers practice Monday.
The former fourth-round pick, who’s entering a contract year, has started 27 games with Green Bay since his rookie season. If it’s determined Ryan will miss time, Demovsky notes third-round rookie Oren Burks could be thrust into action alongside Blake Martinez. The Packers have also been impressed with rookie UDFA Greer Martini, per Demovsky.
Ryan played 506 snaps last season, and although his 79 tackles were well off Martinez’s league-leading 142, PFF preferred his coverage to Martinez’s work as Green Bay’s other primary linebacker.
Safety Kentrell Brice, whom Demovsky writes may be the leading candidate to replace Morgan Burnett, was also carted away from practice Monday. Brice was running with Green Bay’s first-string defense. Josh Jones, a 2017 second-round pick, replaced Brice with the starting defense.
Wow those would both be huge losses for an already shaky defense.
The reason it’s a shaky defense is gone….capers. It’s improved already by his absence. But yes….big loss.
We Bear fans are just heartbroken when we read something like this.
That’s the difference between Bears fans and Packers fans. Bears fans want to play the Packers when they have lots of injuries, Packers fans want the Bears at full strength when when we kick your a..
Thanks for confirming that the league’s longest rivalry is still the best.
We lions fan love it too.
Injuries are the only way the Bears and Lions have a prayer of doing anything. Been that way for a couple of decades, so your bitterness is understandable.
Well, poop.
Lions fans are not really relevant to this convo or most
When have the Lions ever been relevant?
Interesting stat: 40 more TD passes without a playoff win, and Stafford will have displaced Sonny Jurgenson fir mist TDs thrown without a playoff win.
Someday (maybe) the Lions will be in the postseason and I will root for them. Not cause I’m a Lions fan, but because we’ve absolutely punished them for most of my life. Kinda like being a Brewers fan.
Let the injuries that reveal the packers bandaided together team begin 6-11 here we come
Pretty sure packers went 7-9 with one of the biggest injuries possible last year? An upright Aaron Rodgers and the Packers are a 10-11 win team.
This does hurt depth for sure, and possibly starting combinations. I think Packer fans were all hoping that Oren Burks took the other ILB role and Josh Jones would be playing SS eventually. But Ryan and Brice are good players.