NFC Notes: Lions, Packers, Vikings

Lions

• The Athletic’s Jeff Duncan reports the Lions have expressed interest in Saints pro personnel director Terry Fontenot for their general manager vacancy. 
• Pro Football Network’s Tony Pauline continues to hear 49ers DC Robert Saleh should be the favorite to land the Lions head coaching gig, with the team hiring a general manager he’s familiar with. 
• Michael Rothstein of ESPN, citing sources, reports that Lions C Frank Ragnow‘s throat injury is considered a “vocal cord contusion,” but he can breathe without any issues. Rothstein points out that Ragnow’s largest issue is talking and struggles with communicating during games.
• Lions QB Matthew Stafford did not practice again Thursday. Ragnow is resting his vocal cords until Friday when his fractured throat will be re-evaluated. (Dave Birkett)
• The Lions are bringing in G Jordan Roos and C Jon Toth for workouts this week. (Aaron Wilson)

Packers

Packers veteran QB Aaron Rodgers feels that their offense is “playing great football” now that they have won three games in a row entering Week 15, pointing out that they are highly rated in several categories. 

“Yeah, we’re playing great football,” Rodgers said, via Pat McAfee. “Now we can say it. We’re 14 weeks in, 13 games and a bye, so yeah now we can say it. We’re having, you know, a lot of success on offense. I think we’re number two in yards. Not sure where we’re at in points per game. We’re number two in third-down percentage. Number one now in the red zone.”

• Packers HC Matt LaFleur said TE Jace Sternberger is still working his way through the concussion protocol, while OLB Rashan Gary feels good and should be able to play Saturday. (Wes Hodkiewicz)
• Packers OL coach Adam Stenavich said rookie G Simon Stepaniak (knee) isn’t ready to play in Saturday’s game after recently being activated from the Non-Football Injury list but could be available for the playoffs: “That’s not out of the realm of possibility.” (Wood)
• The Packers are working out K John Baron on Thursday. (Matt Schneidman)

Vikings

The 300 touch mark is one that’s become rarer for players to hit in the modern NFL. But that’s where Vikings RB Dalvin Cook finds himself with 310 touches in just 12 games so far this season. Teams have become much more cognizant of what those workloads do for players’ longevity and the Vikings did just make a major investment in Cook this year. But he says he feels great despite the weekly pounding. 

“My thing is keep working, keep pounding away, always be ready, so when my team calls upon me to take 30 touches, 40 touches, whatever it is, be ready, and I don’t have no limitations on my body,” Cook said via ESPN’s Courtney Cronin. “I’m willing to give it all each and every Sunday, each and every day for these guys, and that’s just the type of person I am.”

• The Athletic’s Arif Hasan notes the particulars of the COVID-19 pandemic make it more difficult for the Vikings to solve their issues with K Dan Bailey. Not only do the testing protocols make it hard to get a new kicker in quickly, but there are 11 kickers on practice squads who would usually be free agents and six of them were protected from signing elsewhere by their teams. 
• After sounding down on Bailey for most of the week, Vikings HC Mike Zimmer struck a different tone Thursday: “He’s kicked good this week. I talked to him a couple times this week about certain things. He’s a very even-keeled guy that has a history of being a terrific kicker in this league.” (Andrew Krammer)
• Zimmer added: “Like I told the team the other day, there’s not one guy on our football team that hasn’t had a bad day. That’s just part of life. … We’re not going to dwell on it. Everybody else is, but we’re not.” (Krammer)