Al Harris' Injury Adds to Packers' Lack Of Secondary Depth

Turns out the Packers' loss on Sunday night may have resulted in more than just an L on the schedule.

The Packers have possibly lost cornerback Al Harris for the season with a ruptured spleen, and safety Nick Collins will miss an undisclosed amount of time because of a back contusion suffered in the game.

The Packers now have major depth issues at the back end of their defense. 

Harris was hurt on a freak play, blindsided by teammate A.J. Hawk. Initially the report was that Harris wasn't severely hurt and was only suffering from cramps. However, the news out of Packers camp on Monday was far from optimistic.

Harris' agent said that he'd likely be done for the year.

"The CT scan did confirm there's a tear in the spleen. Anytime you have a ruptured spleen, you're not going to take chances because it can re-rupture and be worse then when you have it removed," Jack Bechta, Harris' agent said.

The losses of Harris and Collins could be devastating to a Packers secondary that has already seen injuries to corner Charles Woodson and safety Atari Bigby.

Their lack of secondary depth was on full display Sunday night against Dallas.

On Felix Jones' 60-yard touchdown run, back up safety Charlie Peprah took a horrible angle on Jones, and Jones raced past him on the left sidelines for an easy score.

Then backup corner Tramon Williams was unable to make a play on a ball that ended up in Cowboy receiver Miles Austin's hands for another Dallas touchdown.

Both were huge plays—the latter putting the Packers away—that contributed to the Cowboys' 27-16 win.

If Harris is in fact done for the season, Williams will become the starter opposite of Woodson. If Collins has to miss considerable time, and if Bigby's hamstring injury doesn't soon improve, Peprah will get significant playing time as well.

Coach Mike McCarthy was unable to give any kind of update on Collins, saying only that he suffered a back contusion. McCarthy was also unsure if Bigby would play next week against Tampa Bay.

The Packers will need backups in the secondary to improve their play if they expect to make it back to the NFC championship game. They will need considerable contributions from the likes of Williams and Peprah, but also safety Aaron Rouse and corner Will Blackmon.

Packers defensive coordinator Bob Sanders reiterated that fact. "Any time you lose guys, it's hard, but you expect other guys to step up."

Rouse has all the tools to be a productive safety, and has shown flashes of greatness in the little playing time he has had.However, he is also inexperienced and inconsistent, and the Packers will need good safety play now more than ever with the imminent loss of Harris.

Blackmon has had little experience in the Packers' secondary, but the special team ace will be thrust into the important third corner role.

Williams will be reassigned to covering each opposing team's No. 2 receiver, opposed to the third or fourth he's accustomed to. It is yet to be seen if he can handle this role, and his play Sunday night against Austin really emphasized how much the Packers will miss Harris.

Sanders said, "...certainly losing Al, a guy of that caliber, that hurts. Anytime you lose a guy like that, it's not good."