EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. –Harrison Smith returned to the practice field Thursday as a limited participant, but the safety said he's taking it one day at a time.
Smith, who suffered an ankle injury on Nov. 20 against the Cardinals, played through the injury for two games before being sidelined at Jacksonville and against the Colts.
The fifth-year safety said injuries come with the territory.
"It's just part of it; you just have to see how things go," Smith said. "If I can play, I'll play."
According to Smith, he felt good during team practice and didn't consider the cold weather to be a factor one way or another.
"[I'll] just see how it feels and go from there," Smith said. "It felt good; it's getting better. [I'm] moving around pretty well."
If Smith is able to go Saturday, he'll be facing a Packers offense that's firing on all cylinders and is coming off a four-game win streak. While Jordy Nelson tends to make the most splash plays for Green Bay, Smith said the entire group of receivers can keep defenses on their toes.
Know the Green Bay Packers key contributors on offense, defense and special teams heading into the first regular season game at U.S. Bank Stadium.
McCarthy is 112-61-1 in his 11th season as head coach of the Green Bay Packers.
Nelson is the Packers leader in receptions (82), receiving yards (1,037) and receinving touchdowns (12) after missing all of last season with a torn ACL.
Rodgers has thrown seven touchdowns and zero interceptions during the Packers current four-game winning streak.
Cobb has 60 receptions, 610 receiving yards and has caught four touchdowns this season.
The 6-foot-3, 255-pound linebacker has 11.0 career sacks against the Vikings.
Third-year receiver Davante Adams has career-highs in targets (105), yards (922), and touchdowns (nine) this season.
Crosby is 24-28 (85.7%) on field goal attempts this season.
Clinton-Dix has five interceptions this season which is tied for first in the NFC.
Mike McCarthy revealed in his press conference Monday that Sam Shields has been placed on NFL's concussion protocol this week after making a tackle on running back T.J. Yeldon.
Julius Peppers is in his 15th NFL season and is first among active players on the NFL sacks leader list (143.5).
Michael has 104 rushing yards on 24 attempts with the Packers after being waived by the Seattle Seahawks and signed by Green Bay in November.
Guion was drafted by Minnesota in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. Guion played for the Vikings from 2008-13, where he appeared in 68 games with 31 starts.
Montgomery has a career-high of 162 rushing yards last week against the Chicago Bears.
"[Jordy] has always had great hands, extends really well for the ball," Smith said. "Not only him, but their whole receiving corps – they have a good feel of what [quarterback Aaron Rodgers] does and how he buys time and how they extend routes. They're obviously doing a great job of that."
The Packers also recently transitioned Ty Montgomery from receiver to running back, and it's proven a worthwhile experiment. Against Chicago last week, Montgomery racked up 162 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
"It's impressive," Smith said. "He's a talented returner, too, so he has good vision, he runs hard, physical guy. He's a very good running back, and it doesn't matter what number he's wearing."
Smith said Green Bay getting its ground game up and running has opened up the offense as a whole and allowed more passing plays, as well.
Through 12 games played this season, Smith is second on the team – and leads the defensive backs – with 97 tackles (63 solo). He's also recorded 2.0 sacks, three passes broken up, four tackles for loss, five quarterback hits and two fumble recoveries.
Smith, who was recently **voted into the 2017 Pro Bowl**, said it's extremely difficult for him to sit out any time, whether the game ends in a win or a loss. Anthony Harris has stepped in for Smith in the past two games, and Smith said he assumes more of a coaching role when he's unable to help his teammates on the field.
Being an observer for consecutive matchups has given Smith a different perspective.
When asked if he's seen communication issues or coverage mishaps that he could have prevented if in the game, Smith said it's a matter of perception and always easy to say you would have done something differently.
"I say that about myself when I watch myself on film – 'I should have played that different,' or, 'If that happens again, I'll play it different,' " Smith said. "So, I try to just look at things and try to help from the sideline and just help from that point of view."
Added Smith: "When you're out there, everything's different than when you're watching from a birds-eye view."
