McCarthy leaves door open for Rodgers to come off IR by Saturday

Friday is the first day Aaron Rodgers is eligible to return from injured reserve. Though the Green Bay Packers don't practice on Fridays, the quarterback could return for Saturday's session.

Rodgers, who broke his collarbone in Week 6, was seen throwing a pass about 50 yards before Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. On Monday, head coach Mike McCarthy wouldn't shut down the possibility of Rodgers coming of IR by Saturday.

"We'll see," McCarthy said, according to ESPN's Rob Demovsky. "I mean, he's still going through - there's a protocol, there's targets we're trying to hit each and every week. I think they're working (on it), and it's segmented. The A-No. 1 priority is to get him healthy. Practice is not something we're really focused on right now.

"I'm more focused on game planning for the Buccaneers. There's a plan laid out for Aaron, just like the other guys on IR. He's knocking it out of the park, he's going at it 120 miles an hour. We'll see what the end of the week brings."

If Rodgers does come off IR by Saturday, he wouldn't be eligible to play Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or the Cleveland Browns in Week 14. The Packers would likely need to win both upcoming games to remain in the wild-card hunt for Rodgers' return. If the team is no longer in playoff contention by the time Rodgers can play, they may keep him off the field for precautionary reasons.