GREEN BAY — Maybe Aaron Rodgers will practice significantly more than he did last week, maybe he won’t.

Maybe his throwing shoulder will be less painful than it was during Sunday’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons, maybe it’ll hurt just as much.
Right now, the Green Bay Packers quarterback just doesn’t know.

But he does know this, without question: He will not be a game-time decision for Sunday’s game at Seattle. No early morning testing session will be required to get medical clearance, either.

“I’m going to play,” Rodgers said after taking part in Wednesday’s early practice jog-through — without throwing — before continuing his rehabilitation work on his right shoulder. “No doubt about that.”

Rodgers, who suffered a partially dislocated right (throwing) shoulder at Tampa Bay on Sept. 28 and took only a dozen or so jog-through snaps during last week’s three days of practice, completed 25-of-37 passes for 313 yards with three touchdowns and one interception in the Packers’ 27-24 loss to the Falcons Sunday at Lambeau Field.

He was in constant pain, however, having eschewed a pre-game pain-killing injection. Rodgers said Wednesday that he did take something to help with the pain but intimated it was nothing more than ibuprofen.

“The shoulder’s doing better than it was last week at this point. But we’re just going day-by-day,” Rodgers said. “I’m hoping I can be a little better for Friday and maybe do a little bit more. But that still remains to be seen. All I can say is I’m confident I’ll play this week and hopefully the pain and the soreness will be less than it was last week.”

Rodgers also wore a shoulder harness to keep the joint protected and will wear the harness again this week as well.

“It’s like a ’bro,“’ Rodgers said, referring to the Seinfeld “Man-ssiere” episode.

Coach Mike McCarthy said Rodgers was “sore” after “extensive” rehab work Monday, so the training staff backed off its plan for further rehab work Tuesday.

Rodgers said his rehab work focuses on “strengthening and flexibility.” McCarthy said he wanted to see how the shoulder responded to another intense rehab session Wednesday before deciding whether to let Rodgers throw.

“We’ll see where he is in the morning,” McCarthy said. “My initial plan starting on Monday was for him to start throwing some, but I want to see how he responds.”

Rodgers wants to practice more this week not only because it would be a sign that his shoulder is improved, but because of its importance in preparation. Even with the Seahawks’ 1-3 start, Seattle’s Qwest Field is one of the loudest stadiums in the league, and the Seahawks’ defense, which surrendered 523 yards in Sunday’s 44-6 loss to the New York Giants at the Meadowlands, tends to play better at home.

That’s one of the reasons he participated in the 50-minute jog-through period during Wednesday’s practice, just to get a better handle on the Seahawks’ defensive alignments and packages.

“It’s important to be out there. The throwing is on schedule. We’re just going to wait until I feel more comfortable, and I’m not sure if it’s going ot be Friday or maybe I’m not going to go (at all), but mentally I’m going to be dialed in with my preparation.”

Rodgers’ mental preparation before last week’s game might have been as impressive as his pain tolerance during the game. While defensive teammates A.J. Hawk and Charles Woodson played without practicing all week, doing so at quarterback is almost unheard of.

“Obviously we’d like him to be healthy, but it was great to see him go out there and play without making a lot of mental mistakes because he didn’t practice,” said quarterbacks coach Tom Clements. “He was able to study the game plan, get some mental reps down there (at practice) when he was down there. Hopefully we’ll be able to have him practice a little bit (more), but if that’s not the case, we’ll just go the same route as last week.”

While much of the post-game talk centered on what Rodgers proved to his teammates about his toughness — “When you go out and play the way he did, under the circumstances, after not practicing all week, I think that showed a lot of guys how tough he is,” right tackle Mark Tauscher said — Rodgers felt playing well with limited practice time proved more to himself about his cognitive abilities.

“I think I proved to the staff and really to myself — although you don’t want this to be a precedent — that I can play effectively without practicing all week,” Rodgers said. “Now, I want to be out there as much as I can, but you have to be realistic with the state of my body at the moment.

“The preparation is still going to be the same, the mental reps I’m taking in practice, during the walkthrough and watching the film post-practice is going to remain the same. I’m very confident I can play this week. I’m hoping the pain and the soreness will be less, but either way I’m going to go.”

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