GREEN BAY – Receiver Christian Watson's knee injury is not as bad as it could've been, and the Packers aren't ruling out his availability for Sunday at Minnesota.
Asked Tuesday whether Watson could play this week after exiting Monday night's win over New Orleans, Head Coach Matt LaFleur responded, "Potentially."
A Saints defender landed awkwardly on Watson's leg out of bounds at the conclusion of a running play, and Watson tried to return to the game but ultimately couldn't.
"We got good news on him," LaFleur continued. "More just a bruise. You've still got to be able to function (in order to play), so we'll see how he practices this week and see where we're at."
The other injury news from Monday night's playoff-clinching 34-0 victory was that rookie safety Evan Williams could be out through at least the end of the regular season with a quadricep injury he sustained in Saturday's practice.
Zayne Anderson had to step in on short notice to make his first NFL start and performed well, getting his first interception as a pro and breaking up another pass to help the defense pitch a shutout.
LaFleur credited Anderson for his quick and effective preparation, as well as the veteran leadership of Xavier McKinney, who pulled the safeties aside after Sunday's walk-through to go over various details of the game plan heading into Monday.
"That's really cool that it means that much to these guys that they want to go out there and make sure they're on top of their game," LaFleur said. "And we certainly were."
The Packers need that to continue as they take their 11-4 record into noisy U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on Sunday to face the 13-2 Vikings. Green Bay is playing for seeding amongst the three NFC wild card teams, hoping to have a chance to climb as high as the No. 5. The Packers are currently in the No. 6 spot but would be in danger of falling to the No. 7 with a loss.
Meanwhile the Vikings are looking to beat both the Packers and the Lions in the last two weeks of the regular season to earn the NFC's No. 1 seed and first-round bye. Any loss by Minnesota would drop the Vikings to the No. 5 seed at best.
"It's going to be a great challenge for us and one that quite frankly I think we need, because we're going to be going on the road in the playoffs," LaFleur said. "This is going to be a playoff atmosphere and a playoff game."
On a short week coming off the Monday night game, the Packers did themselves a favor in blowing out the Saints because it allowed them to manage the workloads of some veteran players.
Running back Josh Jacobs played just 28 snaps against New Orleans, while on the defensive front, Rashan Gary played just 24 snaps and Kenny Clark 20.
That should benefit the team for the stretch run, during which the Packers appear to be making more progress toward fully hitting their stride as they prepare to become road warriors in the postseason.
"We got two more games in front of us," LaFleur said. "We got a premier team in this league (on deck with Minnesota), one of the best teams. They're playing at a really high level.
"I love the energy and vibe of our team right now, but ultimately this is just one step in the journey, and we've got to continue to build upon it. What a great opportunity to go into one of the toughest environments against one of the toughest teams knowing that's got to be our road to get to where we ultimately would like to go."
