Packers Calendar: Jermichael Finley in for Medical Check-Up as OTAs Start

The free agent tight end is reportedly being checked out by the Packers medical staff on Wednesday.

Tight end Jermichael Finley will undergo testing on his neck on Wednesday with the medical staff of the Green Bay Packers, according to Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Up to this point, no NFL team—the Packers included—have been comfortable with clearing Finley after his neck injury and subsequent spinal-fusion surgery last season.

Finley is currently a free agent and free to sign with any team, and the Packers are still showing interest despite having seven tight ends currently on the roster, including recently added rookies Richard Rodgers and Colt Lyerla.

In the past, the Packers have shown a reluctance to clear players with an issue as high on the spinal column as Finley reportedly has, not willing to risk their quality of life. The comparison that quickly comes to mind is safety Nick Collins, who was more or less forced into retirement due to C3/C4 spinal fusion.

On the other hand, the Packers have cleared safety Sean Richardson to return to action following a similar prodedure, but coming back from an injury lower on the spinal column is considered safer and less risky. Richardson had his fusion between the C5 and C6 vertebrae.

Finley's visit to Green Bay comes as the team begins Organized Team Activities on Wednesday, the first time they'll practice in a team environment this season.

Whether the Packers will be ready to sign Finley and integrate him into practice remains to be seen. There's no guarantee Finley's future with the organization is going to be cut and dried by the end of the day.

Regardless, the rest of the team will carry on with their preparations for the 2014 season as they do their best to make everyone on the roster a better player. Wednesday's practice is not open to the public, but Thursday's practice will be at 11:30 a.m. at Ray Nitschke Field.

Also on Wednesday, two-time Super Bowl champion Jerry Kramer will be our guest on our morning talk show, Railbird Central, right here at Cheesehead TV.

We'll talk to Kramer about his ongoing candidacy for the Pro Football Hall of Fame and his impression on the current Packers team.

The interview will air live right here on the homepage at CheeseheadTV.com at 8:30 a.m. CT or on your Roku player via the Livestream platform. It will be podcasted for on-demand listening later in the day on iTunes, Stitcher and other outlets.

Finally, Packers linebacker A.J. Hawk will reportedly make an appearance at Deke Slayton Airfest in LaCrosse, Wis. on Wednesday.

Hawk will apparently be flying with the Navy Blue Angels.

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Comments (1)

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RCPackerFan's picture

May 28, 2014 at 07:42 am

IF Finley were to get cleared medically, and IF he was signed back by Green Bay, I would expect him to follow a similar path that Richardson did last year.
Be put on the PUP list and not be activated till October-November.

But that is a lot of IF's.

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