The knee injury that preceded one of the greatest comebacks of Aaron Rodgers' career continues to be a nagging issue for the veteran quarterback.
Rodgers told reporters Thursday he suffered a setback in his ongoing rehabilitation to full health during Sunday's loss to the Detroit Lions. While it shouldn't endanger his availability for Monday's game against the San Francisco 49ers, it could limit his mobility in the form of a bigger knee brace.
"Yeah, kind of a setback last week, the beginning of the week," Rodgers told reporters, per ESPN's Rob Demovsky. "Got to be in the rehab group again today, got a lot of good work in with [assistant trainer] Nate [Weir] and just hoping I get back out there tomorrow and have a feel-good Friday and a practice [Sunday] and be good to go -- hopefully back to where I was in Detroit."
Since suffering a sprained knee in the season opener, Rodgers has habitually sat out the first day of practice, so Thursday's absence isn't a surprise. What might be more surprising is that he suffered a setback in a game where he threw for 442 yards and three touchdowns -- a performance that also was tainted by two strip-sack fumbles in combination with Mason Crosby's five missed kicks.
At this point, Rodgers seems more concerned about having to wear a bulkier knee brace against the 49ers than anything else.
"I hope not," said Rodgers when asked if he might have to wear a larger brace. "The goal would be to wear the same brace I wore last week, but I have a lot of faith in our training staff and we're going to [use] the brace we feel is most safe and allowing me to do exactly what I'm able to do on Monday."
It remains to be seen if the latest development with Rodgers' rehab will keep him out of practice Friday.