The Green Bay Packers have another serious neck injury to worry about.
ESPN.com's Rob Demovsky reported Wednesday that the Packers are concerned the neck injury that prematurely ended running back Johnathan Franklin's rookie campaign might be career-threatening.
The team is putting Franklin through more tests to determine if it's safe for him to continue playing, Demovsky reported, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation.
Franklin had one great game in a Week 3 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in which he gained 103 yards on 13 carries, before losing a fourth-quarter fumble that Terence Newman returned for a touchdown.
Franklin carried the ball just six times the rest of the season before being shelved following his Week 12 neck injury.
The 5-foot-10, fourth-round running back was drafted as a shifty change-of-pace player alongside power-runner Eddie Lacy.
Franklin has missed OTAs and minicamp as questions about his health grow.
The running back's status continues a bad trend for Green Bay, which has seen neck injuries of varying severity affect the careers of Jermichael Finley, Nick Collins, Sean Richardson and, famously, Sterling Sharpe.
While Franklin's future remains in question, the Packers will move forward with Lacy as the main back and James Starks and DuJuan Harris as backups.
In the latest edition of the "Around The League Podcast," the heroes discuss which teams "realistically" have no shot at winning the Super Bowl this season.
