Packers TE Luke Musgrave Discusses Toughness, Big Hit by Kareem Jackson

After spending the first half of the week in a walking boot, Green Bay Packers tight end Luke Musgrave practiced. "It was a good step today," he said.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – On Wednesday and Thursday, while his teammates stretched before practice, Green Bay Packers rookie tight end Luke Musgrave sat in the background and watched.

On Friday, Musgrave practiced.

“Was a little surprised, to be honest with you, but he looked good,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “We’ll see where he’s at, see how he’s feeling, make a decision on gameday.”

LaFleur listed Musgrave as limited participation on Friday and questionable for Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings.

“We’re still feeling it out, but it was a good step today,” Musgrave said.

Musgrave suffered an injured ankle after being driven backward on a big hit by Denver’s Kareem Jackson that led to the veteran safety being ejected and suspended. Even on Thursday morning, Musgrave was wearing a walking boot.

“I’ve always prided myself on physical toughness,” Musgrave said. “I’m going to see and keep on taking the ankle day by day.”

Musgrave missed the first two practices of the week, which isn’t ideal for a rookie, but he knows the offense well enough that LaFleur said he would be comfortable not only playing him on minimal practice reps but giving him a sizable role in the game plan, so long as the injury continues to progress.

“Yeah, I do. I think he’s super-mature for a rookie,” LaFleur said. “I’ll tell you what: He’s one tough sucker now. I don’t think too many guys would’ve been able to come back that quickly from what happened to him.

“It just shows his toughness, his grit, his desire to want to be out there to help the team win. He’s a guy we’re going to keep trying to get the ball to. We’ve got to find ways to do that, but to have him – if he’s available on Sunday – would be a big plus for us.”

From the moment it happened, Musgrave said the ankle was the issue rather than the hit itself. Indeed, even though Jackson wound up getting a two-game suspension, Musgrave didn’t think Jackson did anything wrong.

“It wasn’t that bad of a hit, if you really slow it down,” said Musgrave, who’s second on the team with 22 receptions and third with 189 yards. “I think it looked worse than it was. It was a big hit but it’s the National Football League. There are going to be big hits. It was unfortunate my ankle got caught but I don’t think it was a horrible hit that he gave; I didn’t see it that way, at least.”

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