Packers close to full strength entering Week 1 vs. Saints

The Packers are almost fully healthy entering the season opener.

A long season awaits for the Green Bay Packers. As is the case for every Super Bowl contender, getting good luck with injuries will be important over the next few months.

Outside of David Bakhtiari not being ready just yet — he’ll miss the first six games on the PUP list — the Packers are close to full strength ahead of their opener against the New Orleans Saints.

According to ESPN’s Rob Demovsky, the only player on the roster not to practice on Wednesday was safety Vernon Scott, who is dealing with a hamstring injury.

Pass rusher Za’Darius Smith, who has missed some time with a back injury, was practicing.

Smith’s status for Sunday’s game remains unclear — Wednesday’s injury report might give us a better idea — but the fact he’s practicing is a good sign that he’s close to a return.

If Scott is out, the Packers’ top three at safety will be starters Adrian Amos and Darnell Savage, along with preseason standout Henry Black.

It’s Week 1. You’d hope to be pretty healthy at the start of the season, but that’s not the case for every team. Many other teams have lost key players for the entire year. The Packers have been fortunate with injuries so far, the one exception being Bakhtiari, although he should be able to return at some point, potentially Week 7.

On Wednesday, the Packers will release their first injury report of the season. This will give us a (slightly) better idea of which players could miss Sunday’s trip to Jacksonville. Hopefully, the majority of the roster will be full participants at practice and the injury report will be small.

Based on Demovsky’s report from practice, it seems the Packers are close to being fully healthy ahead of their season opener.