For the second straight week, Packers GM/Head Coach Mike Sherman had questions to answer regarding the health of quarterback Brett Favre in his weekly Monday press conference.
Favre missed much of the second half of Sunday's game against the New York Giants after suffering a concussion as he hit his head hard on the ground at Lambeau Field in the third quarter of the contest.
Although the quarterback re-entered the game after initially sitting out two snaps and threw a touchdown pass, the team's medical staff kept him on the sideline for the remainder of the game.
Last week in Indianapolis, Favre missed the team's final series after being taking a shot to the back of his leg, causing a bruised hamstring that he played through Sunday, making his 193rd consecutive regular season start in the process.
Sherman addressed the condition of his quarterback at the opening of the press conference, stating that once again, Favre's iron man streak does not appear to be in jeopardy.
"Brett, as you know, had a concussion during the game," Sherman said. "He hasn't had one since 1995 as far as I know. (That came) against Pittsburgh in a preseason game. I just talked to him and he's fine. I may hold him back on Wednesday, but he will practice on Thursday. He's been looked at by the doctors and they feel pretty confident that he's OK to go."
Although the coach is confident that Favre will be ready to play when the Tennessee Titans come to Green Bay next Monday night, he and his medical staff will still monitor the quarterback this week.
"We'll watch him very closely, there's no question about that," said Sherman. "(We do that) any time anybody has a head injury. We saw specifically how it happened - he hit the back of his helmet on the ground as he was being tackled, and then he throws a touchdown pass, runs into the end zone, jumps on the pile and does the same thing again. Yeah, we'll keep a good eye on him."
Favre's ability to play through injuries that he's proven time and time again over the years could almost cause you to think that it's a foregone conclusion that he will be in the lineup next week.
Sherman pointed out, though, that Favre won't just be out there because he's Favre - he believes the quarterback will be fully able to take the field and perform without any physical hindrance.
"I don't mean to minimize what I say about Brett," said Sherman, "But I know how we maximize his importance, and rightfully so, but all indications are that he suffered a concussion that's not a severe concussion at this juncture. We will keep an eye on it."
In the locker room Monday, Favre's teammates also expected to have their leader under center when the lights go up next week.
"I saw him today and he looked like the normal Brett," right guard Marco Rivera said. "A little dizzy, but he's ok. Hopefully he'll be fine. Knowing Brett, he's a tough guy and he'll be there for us, so I don't think that's too much of a worry to me."
Rivera then summed up not only the feeling of the players in the locker room, but most likely the feeling of Packers fans everywhere, as well.
"He's our team leader," the lineman said. "He's very important. Having him on the field improves our chances of winning."
