GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - Green Bay Packers Pro Bowl center Mike Flanagan will undergo surgery on his left knee and miss the rest of the season.
Coach Mike Sherman made the announcement after practice Friday, meaning for the second time in three years the Packers have to deal with an early season loss on their offensive line.
The surgery to repair the patella tendon in Flanagan's left knee will be performed in the next week to 10 days, and the timetable for his recovery is about six months, Sherman said.
Flanagan has had patella tendinitis since an offseason minicamp in June. The ninth-year veteran missed all but the final week of the preseason and started the first three regular-season games, though he wasn't able to finish two.
"We're trying to avoid a rupture of the patella tendon, and this is one way to settle it down," Sherman said. "We've gone back and forth over this numerous times. (The knee) just has not gotten any better. It has gotten progressively worse. To avoid a possible career-ending injury, this is the best option."
The decision was made Friday morning, Sherman said. He consulted with Flanagan and the team's medical staff before practice.
Flanagan had been listed as questionable on the injury report for Sunday's home game against the New York Giants.
Sixth-year veteran Grey Ruegamer, with three NFL starts to his credit while with New England, will replace Flanagan in the starting lineup.
Ruegamer started the first three exhibition games this year in Flanagan's absence and relieved him toward the end of the season-opening win at Carolina on Sept. 13 and the home loss to Chicago the following week.
The Packers also planned to promote rookie Scott Wells from the practice squad to be Ruegamer's backup.
Flanagan, 30, earned his first Pro Bowl trip last season as an alternate on the NFC team in place of injured Olin Kreutz of Chicago.
Flanagan, left tackle Chad Clifton, left guard Mike Wahle, Pro Bowl right guard Marco Rivera and right tackle Mark Tauscher have been starting together since the start of the 2001 season.
But the line was decimated a year later. Tauscher sustained a season-ending knee injury in Week 2 at New Orleans. Clifton later was lost for the final six games because of a severely damaged pelvis sustained on a blindside hit by Tampa Bay's Warren Sapp.
Dating to the outset of last season, the Packers offensive line was intact for the last 21 games, including postseason.
"We have a good thing going here, and he's a big part of it," Wahle said of Flanagan. "So, it's a huge loss."
Flanagan, who missed his first two pro seasons in 1996 and '97 because of a broken right leg, made his 50th career start in the Packers' 45-31 loss at Indianapolis on Sunday.
He was able to play the entire game on artificial turf at the RCA Dome. An MRI on Tuesday didn't reveal anything different from exams performed in previous weeks.
"But, even without changes, it was not a great picture," Sherman said. "He has experienced tremendous pain with this and has played with it. It's just been debilitating in regard to him.
"It's just wearing him down mentally and physically."
http://www.nfl.com/injuries
Coach Mike Sherman made the announcement after practice Friday, meaning for the second time in three years the Packers have to deal with an early season loss on their offensive line.
The surgery to repair the patella tendon in Flanagan's left knee will be performed in the next week to 10 days, and the timetable for his recovery is about six months, Sherman said.
Flanagan has had patella tendinitis since an offseason minicamp in June. The ninth-year veteran missed all but the final week of the preseason and started the first three regular-season games, though he wasn't able to finish two.
"We're trying to avoid a rupture of the patella tendon, and this is one way to settle it down," Sherman said. "We've gone back and forth over this numerous times. (The knee) just has not gotten any better. It has gotten progressively worse. To avoid a possible career-ending injury, this is the best option."
The decision was made Friday morning, Sherman said. He consulted with Flanagan and the team's medical staff before practice.
Flanagan had been listed as questionable on the injury report for Sunday's home game against the New York Giants.
Sixth-year veteran Grey Ruegamer, with three NFL starts to his credit while with New England, will replace Flanagan in the starting lineup.
Ruegamer started the first three exhibition games this year in Flanagan's absence and relieved him toward the end of the season-opening win at Carolina on Sept. 13 and the home loss to Chicago the following week.
The Packers also planned to promote rookie Scott Wells from the practice squad to be Ruegamer's backup.
Flanagan, 30, earned his first Pro Bowl trip last season as an alternate on the NFC team in place of injured Olin Kreutz of Chicago.
Flanagan, left tackle Chad Clifton, left guard Mike Wahle, Pro Bowl right guard Marco Rivera and right tackle Mark Tauscher have been starting together since the start of the 2001 season.
But the line was decimated a year later. Tauscher sustained a season-ending knee injury in Week 2 at New Orleans. Clifton later was lost for the final six games because of a severely damaged pelvis sustained on a blindside hit by Tampa Bay's Warren Sapp.
Dating to the outset of last season, the Packers offensive line was intact for the last 21 games, including postseason.
"We have a good thing going here, and he's a big part of it," Wahle said of Flanagan. "So, it's a huge loss."
Flanagan, who missed his first two pro seasons in 1996 and '97 because of a broken right leg, made his 50th career start in the Packers' 45-31 loss at Indianapolis on Sunday.
He was able to play the entire game on artificial turf at the RCA Dome. An MRI on Tuesday didn't reveal anything different from exams performed in previous weeks.
"But, even without changes, it was not a great picture," Sherman said. "He has experienced tremendous pain with this and has played with it. It's just been debilitating in regard to him.
"It's just wearing him down mentally and physically."
http://www.nfl.com/injuries
