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Dancing Driver faces uncertain future in Green Bay

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson and coach Mike McCarthy both enjoy watching veteran wide receiver Donald Driver compete on "Dancing With the Stars."

There is no guarantee he'll be on the roster by the time training camp rolls around.

Driver is the leading receiver in franchise history with 735 catches for 10,060 yards. But he turned 37 in February, and said after the Packers' playoff loss to the New York Giants that he wasn't sure if the team would bring him back for the final year of his contract.

Asked about Driver's future Saturday, Thompson stopped short of guaranteeing that Driver's spot was secure.

"I would never speculate on something like that," Thompson said. "He's dancing right now. Doing good, too."

McCarthy said there was "no reason to speculate on that."

However, McCarthy did say he and his family are having fun watching Driver's dancing.

"Of course," McCarthy said. "I didn't realize it was such a tough thing for a man that they (watch) `Dancing with the Stars.' And if I'm not at home, we have to DVR it and watch it as a family. We're rooting him on and voting eight times like you're supposed to. He's doing a great job; keeping in shape, that's for sure. Not that that was ever an issue with Donald. It's a great experience for him and his family."

The Packers already have made tough decisions on two veteran players in the past week, releasing safety Nick Collins and left tackle Chad Clifton.

Clifton is coming off an injury-filled 2011 season, and the team was concerned about Collins' ability to return from a season-ending neck injury.

"That is something you never get used to," McCarthy said. "That was a hard week starting with Chad on Monday and Nick, both with medical situations that led to that decision."

McCarthy said Collins' decision was particularly personal.

"Ted Thompson and I sat down and the final question gets asked: if Nick was your son, would you let him play?" McCarthy said. "So that's why we made the decision we did."

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