The Green Bay Packers appear to have dodged a major injury to Brandon Cisse, but it should serve as a warning to head coach Matt LaFleur.
At the scene of the crime where the Packers' Super Bowl dreams went up in smoke last December after season-ending injuries to Micah Parsons and Zach Bako-Bewele, there was a familiar sense of dread when Cisse limped off with a knee injury during Friday's preseason win. Fortunately, the rookie cornerback is OK.
"I just got beat up a little bit. Nothing serious at all. I was trying to go back in. Just being precautionary. I'm fine. Nothing to worry about. I wanted to go back in," Cisse said, via Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
Wood had noted during the game that Cisse was on the sideline smiling with his teammates, which seemed to indicate he hadn't suffered a concerning injury. Videos of him walking off the field postgame appeared to back that up.
Consider it a crisis dodged. The Packers need Cisse, who has emerged as the likely CB1 ahead of Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine. Losing him on a special teams play would've been a sickening and completely avoidable disaster. Let that be a lesson, LaFleur.
Brandon Cisse should play no further part in the Packers' preseason and get ready for Week 1
For starters, keep Cisse away from special teams. He also shouldn't play another preseason snap.
LaFleur hinted that the Packers will rest many of their starters in next week's preseason finale against the Arizona Cardinals. The two teams will meet for a joint practice at Ray Nitschke Field, which will allow the starters to get reps while running more of their "real" plays as opposed to the watered-down preseason game plans.
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In any case, Cisse should play no part in the preseason finale. It can be tempting to give rookies as many snaps as possible in August to get them ready for the regular season. Forget that.
Cisse is the Packers' best cornerback, and it's not particularly close. He proved that again on Friday night.
The rookie blanketed wide receiver Courtland Sutton for an incompletion on the sideline. It was the only time Bo Nix threw into Cisse's coverage, and the Packers' second-round rookie was equal to it.
It follows on from everything we've seen all summer. Sure, Cisse has endured some occasional "Welcome to the NFL" moments from Christian Watson, but even the greatest cornerbacks get beaten by great receivers. It happens. The important part is that those moments have been few and far between for Cisse, who already looks like a quality NFL starting cornerback.
Packers need to rest their starters in the final preseason game vs. Cardinals
It's impossible to completely avoid injury. It's football, after all. Next week's joint practice will come with its own share of injury risks, but the Packers should take a cautious approach as they enter the home stretch of the preseason.
LaFleur wants to avoid a slow start to the regular season, and he believes getting snaps in August can help start faster in Week 1 and prevent injuries once the proper games get underway. That all makes sense, but it's a balance.
Playing in the preseason may prevent injuries later on, but injuries can happen during the preseason. That's the problem.
The Packers learned that the hard way last year when Jordan Love injured his thumb in the preseason opener. It was on his non-throwing hand, but he still required surgery and missed a ton of practice time. Fans will remember the misery of Jordy Nelson's ACL tear in a preseason game a little over a decade ago.
Green Bay's starters have gotten some valuable reps over the past two weeks, but that's enough for the preseason.
Cisse thankfully avoided a long-term injury, but it should serve as a warning to LaFleur. Keep the starters out next Friday night and give them the best chance of arriving at U.S. Bank Stadium in Week 1 as close to 100 percent as possible.
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