Nick Perry & Clay Matthews
For the second time in as many years, Nick Perry is headed for hand surgery. The Green Bay Packers starting outside linebacker will have the procedure something this week.
Perry missed two games late last season when he needed screws placed into several broken fingers on his left hand. He returned to the lineup with a club cast and tallied three sacks in the last two games to finish with a career-high 11 for the season.
Packers coach Mike McCarthy wouldn’t say if it’s the same hand or even the same injury and he told the media at his Thursday press conference that a timeline for Perry’s return won’t be established until they get through the surgery.
Perry signed a five-year, $60 million contract during the offseason. Perry was the 28th overall pick in the 2012 draft and if he doesn’t play in Sunday’s game against the Bengals, it means he won’t play in all 16 regular season games for the sixth straight season.
The Packers do get help with recently acquired Ahmad Brooks, who was cleared from the teams concussion protocol and returned to the practice field on Wednesday. He sustained the concussion early in the opener against Seattle and is expected to have a larger role this week.