Head coach Mike McCarthy revealed Wednesday that Harrell has been bothered by a hip injury the last couple weeks. Consequently, Harrell appears on the injury report for Sunday's game at the Jacksonville Jaguars.

"It really has gotten to a point where (team doctor Pat) McKenzie felt we needed to shut him down (Wednesday) and (Thursday), and we will test him on Friday," McCarthy said.

Harrell has played in the last six games, but only after he was on the physically unable to perform list for the first eight weeks of the season because of a twice-surgically repaired back, an injury he sustained while lifting weights in the team's offseason program.

Harrell's rookie season also was rife with medical setbacks. He missed nine of the first 11 games because of extended recovery for a torn bicep he suffered during his senior season of college at Tennessee in 2006 and then an ankle injury he sustained in an in-season practice last year.

Harrell has played in just 15 of a possible 31 games his first two years in the league, with only three starts (all last season).

A disappointed McCarthy said Harrell has endured "a rough patch" with the injuries.

Harrell has just 13 tackles this season since coming off PUP.

"He's never really been able to get healthy," McCarthy said. "His snaps have been limited, and I thought there was some progress in the pass-rush part of it and a little progress in the run blocking. Once again, he's a young player that's kind of going through a medical stage right now. We just have to keep working with him to get through it."

--Defensive tackle Johnny Jolly spent the players' day off Tuesday in Houston for a court appearance related to felony drug charges he faces after he was arrested there in July.

Jolly, a third-year pro from Houston, was charged with possession of at least 200 grams of codeine after he was apprehended while sitting in a vehicle outside a nightclub.

A trial date of March 27 was set at Tuesday's pretrial motion hearing.

--Running back Ryan Grant is a good bet to realize his first 1,000-yard rushing regular season in the NFL in Sunday's game.

Grant needs only 20 yards to reach the milestone. It would be only the 20th time in team history a running back ran for 1,000 yards in a season. The last was Ahman Green in 2006.

After becoming the starter at halfback at midseason last year, Grant nearly rushed for 1,000 yards, finishing with 956. Counting the playoffs, however, Grant's season total in 2007 was 1,186.

--The Packers filled out their eight-man practice squad Wednesday by signing three rookie players: 6-foot, 225-pound running back Steven Korte (LSU); 5-11, 196-pound cornerback Joshua Abrams (Ohio); and 6-3, 329-pound defensive tackle Fred Bledsoe (Arkansas).

Bledsoe was on Green Bay's taxi squad earlier in the season.

The additions come after the Packers had rookie cornerback Kennard Cox signed off the practice squad to the Jaguars' 53-man roster Monday.

BY THE NUMBERS: 0 - Wins by the Packers in eight games this season when they've trailed at halftime.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "It's time to fight, and I'm not talking about when a guy is blocking late after the whistle. It's time to fight our way out of this (5-8) hole that we created. We're in this position for a reason, and it's time to fight in every aspect of our play." -- Head coach Mike McCarthy on keeping his players motivated for the final three weeks of the regular season with the team's playoff hopes all but vanished.