GREEN BAY - Cornerback Al Harris has
a "serious" spleen injury that requires a cautious
approach, but he hasn't been ruled out for the rest of the
season, Packers coach Mike McCarthy said Wednesday.
"I'm hopeful he'll be
back," McCarthy said. "The time frame just hasn't been
established."
Harris was injured in the first
quarter of Green Bay's loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday
night. The injury is believed to be a ruptured spleen, which
sidelined then-Tampa Bay quarterback Chris Simms for the rest of
the season in 2006.
"It's a serious
injury," McCarthy said. "I think that's obvious to
everybody. And really, as we move forward, it's a different type
of injury. And we will take a cautious approach, and everything
we'll do will be in his best interests."
Harris, one of the Packers' top
defensive players, won't be able to do any significant physical
activity for at least a week and will not play in Sunday's game
at Tampa Bay.
But McCarthy also said Harris has
sought at least three medical opinions this week and there's a
"good chance" he can avoid surgery.
"If Al was standing here,
he'd tell you he'd want to play this week," McCarthy said.
"That's kind of how he feels."
Harris' agent, Jack Bechta, is
one of the founders of the Web site nationalfootballpost.com,
and on the site Bechta reported that Harris' CT scan did show
"some damage and bleeding" in the spleen. Harris will
be reevaluated and scanned again "in a few weeks,"
Bechta said.
Harris left Sunday night's game
in the first quarter after he collided with Packers linebacker
A.J. Hawk. Harris returned two plays later.
But he left again and did not
return after tackling Cowboys running back Marion Barber. Harris
went to the locker room in the second quarter with what team
officials described as cramping. McCarthy said after the game
that Harris had blood in his urine and was not allowed to return
by the team's medical staff.
Simms ruptured his spleen in a
game against the Carolina Panthers in 2006 and had an emergency
procedure to have it removed. He missed the rest of the season
and returned in 2007, but was inactive for the first five games
before being placed on injured reserve.
The Buccaneers cut Simms in
August, and he signed with Tennessee this month. Simms has yet
to play in three games for the Titans.
Losing Harris for any extended
time will be a difficult blow to the Packers' defense. Harris,
who specializes in the aggressive style of bump-and-run coverage
favored by Packers coaches, went to his first Pro Bowl last
season.
Despite both being over the age
of 30, he and Charles Woodson form one of the NFL's most
formidable cornerback tandems. Woodson was effective against
Cowboys receiver Terrell Owens on Sunday, but the Packers had a
hard time containing the rest of the Cowboys without Harris on
the field.
"Anytime you lose guys, it's
hard, but you expect other guys to step up," Packers
defensive coordinator Bob Sanders said after Sunday's game.
"But certainly losing Al, a guy of that caliber, that
hurts. Anytime you lose a guy like that, it's not good."
Harris' starting spot will be
taken by second-year player Tramon Williams.
