Reviewing the 23 roster moves made by Packers during Week 18

6 days ago 2

An incredible, almost unbelievable week of roster shuffling for the Green Bay Packers ended Saturday with six more moves, all made by coach Matt LaFleur and general manager Brian Gutekunst to get the team ready for Sunday's regular season finale against the Minnesota Vikings.

The final tally on individual transactions for Week 18 ended up at 23. Many were made to bolster the 53-man roster as the Packers continue to navigate never-ending injury hurdles and prepare to create a suitable 48-player gameday roster for a showdown with the Vikings that means nothing for the team's playoff positioning.

The Packers are locked into the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoffs and are planning to rest or limit playtime of many key starters against the Vikings. But with so many injuries and the limitations of a 53-man roster and practice squad callups, a major bit of shuffling was required across multiple days.

Here's a quick review of the 23 moves made by the Packers between Tuesday and Saturday:

Placed on injured reserve (7)

Players: DL Jordon Riley (Achilles), CB Kamal Hadden (ankle), S Zayne Anderson (ankle), CB Nate Hobbs (knee), WR Savion Williams (foot), OL Donovan Jennings (throat), TE McCallan Castles (practice squad/reserve)

Incredibly, the Packers placed 11 percent of their 53-man roster coming out of Week 17 on injured reserve at some point this week. Four were injured during the Packers' loss to the Ravens. One was injured in practice this week. Another couldn't get over an injury that lingered for two months. The avalanche of new injuries combined with the number of pre-existing injuries entering the season's final week forced the Packers' hand. Green Bay currently has 13 players on injured reserve.

Signed from practice squad to 53-man roster (6)

Players: CB Jaylin Simpson, CB Shemar Bartholomew, QB Clayton Tune, S Johnathan Baldwin, WR Jakobie Keeney-James, OL Lecitus Smith

To replace injured players and build out a roster for Sunday, the Packers signed six players -- possibly an unprecedented number for a single week -- from the practice squad. Tune will start at quarterback. The secondary added three new players to use on Sunday, and new injuries at receiver and offensive line required fortifications from the practice squad. Tune, Baldwin and Simpson have been on the practice squad all season. Smith could appear in a regular season game for the first time with the Packers.

Claimed off waivers (2)

Players: DL Jonathan Ford (from Bears), CB Trevon Diggs (from Cowboys)

Desperate for help at both nose tackle and cornerback, the Packers claimed a pair of waived veterans who could help on Sunday and in the postseason. Ford was in Green Bay for the better part of three seasons before playing in 12 games for the Bears over the last two seasons. He'll likely get snaps right away after the Packers lost Jordon Riley (injured reserve) and Quinton Bohanna (released) at nose tackle. Diggs is a former Pro Bowler who hasn't been the same level of player after needing two knee surgeries, but he'll provide a veteran with experience and takeaway potential at a position where the Packers lost two players to season-ending injuries and have two starters struggling. Of all the moves made this week, adding Ford and Diggs are probably the most consequential. The Packers need them to help an ailing defense right away.

Released (1)

Player: DL Quinton Bohanna

His Packers debut came last Saturday night against the Ravens, and it didn't go well as Bohanna was part of a defensive front that gave up over 300 rushing yards. The Packers essentially swapped out Bohanna for Ford.

Signed to practice squad (5)

Players: RB Damien Martinez, G Karsten Barnhart, CB Tyron Herring, QB Desmond Ridder, S Mark Perry

The Packers backfilled the practice squad with these five players. None were elevated to the gameday roster for Week 18, but now all five will have a chance to prove worthy of a futures contract come the end of the season. Ridder had a chance to be the backup quarterback on Sunday but wasn't elevated. It's possible he'll be released when the Packers shuffle the roster again next week.

Elevated from practice squad to Week 18 gameday roster (2)

Players: LB Jamon Johnson, TE Drake Dabney

The Packers passed on elevating Desmond Ridder, so Malik Willis or Jordan Love will be Clayton Tune's backup on Sunday. These were critical callups this week, so expect both Johnson and Dabney to be active and play a lot of snaps on Sunday. Both were previously elevated from the practice squad this season.

This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Reviewing the 23 roster moves made by Packers during Week 18

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