Green Bay Packers tight end Jermichael Finleyplans to play football again, but it won't be this season.
The Packers placed Finley on season-ending injured reserve with a spinal contusion, and activated offensive tackle Derek Sherrod from the reserve/physically unable to perform list to take the roster spot.
The move was fully expected, as Finley still is recovering from the scary Week 7 collision, which he compared to a bad car accident.
Linebacker A.J. Hawk acknowledged to NFL Media's Andrew Siciliano last week that teammates likely would caution against a return for Finley later this season.
"He has kids, he has a wife, he's got a great family," Hawk explained. "He knows it's going to be a long battle, and he's going to have to work hard.
"For him and for all of us, it's going to be more about taking that mental leap of taking that first shot, of getting hit again going down the seam or coming across the middle. And he knows that. ... Obviously he has to let his neck and spine heal up at the same time."
Finley's future in Green Bay is up in the air as a pending free agent. On a positive note, the 26-year-old "can sleep at night" knowing that he has a $10 million tax-free insurance policy if he never plays another down in the NFL.
If all goes according to plan, he will be back in green and gold catching passes from Aaron Rodgers next summer.
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