Packers make rosters moves ahead of week 4 matchup
The Green Bay Packers have made a few roster moves ahead of Sunday’s game against the Steelers. They have officially announced that they have placed receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling on Injured Reserve. And in turn, have elevated receiver Equanimeous St. Brown to the active roster.
Packers head coach Matt LaFleur announced Friday they would be without Valdes-Scantling for some time going forward. But General Manager Brian Gutekunst’s announcement makes the moves official, plus comes with the additional news on St. Brown. Green Bay is placing Valdes-Scantling on short-term injured reserve and not the season-ending list. According to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the injury can be easily reaggravated; so they want to give him enough time to recover.
How long Valdes-Scantling will be out
Valdes-Scantling will be out for this week’s match-up between the Steelers, followed by games against the Cincinnati Bengals and hated divisional-rival Chicago Bears. The Packers could bring him back in Week 7 against the Washington Football Team if he is ready to go by then. Or, they can keep him out a little longer with the short-term tag. Either way, fans should expect to see the wideout back on the field sometime soon.
LaFleur said that the Packers will take the cautious approach in helping Valdes-Scantling recover.
“Anytime you’re dealing with a soft tissue injury, you want to be cautious with that because you don’t want it to turn into a long term deal,” said LaFleur.
On the year, Valdes-Scantling has been pretty quiet through three games. Against the Saints in the season opener, he caught three of his eight targets for just 17 yards. At Detriot, he was a non-factor in the passing game as he did not register a single catch in the game. However, against the 49ers, the Packer clearly put an emphasis on getting him the ball.
St. Brown the savior
St. Brown is a sixth-round pick by the Packers in 2018 out of Notre Dame. The six-foot-five receiver has 29 catches for 445 yards and a touchdown in 25 career games. He played three seasons for the Fighting Irish. In his time there, he had 123 catches, 2,193 yards receiving, 19 touchdowns, and an average of 17.2 yards per catch.
St. Brown will team up with Randall Cobb, rookie Amari Rodgers, and Malik Taylor to fill in Valdes-Scantling’s spot. The Packers still have their elite All-Pro wide receiver Devante Adams and their other starting wideout Allen Lazard to lean on, but will need a group effort at wide receiver no. 3 to fill in for Valdes-Scantling for now.