The Packers - largely due to punter Tim Masthay - allowed just 8 punt return yards to Devin Hester. Credit: John Klein

By of the

Green Bay - Tom Crabtree was the hero of the day for the Green Bay Packers special teams unit Thursday night.

But failing to recognize what punter Tim Masthay accomplished against one of the best returners in NFL history would be like complimenting a brat vendor for his product without thanking the guy who cooked it.

Crabtree's touchdown might not have meant anything if it weren't for Masthay limiting Chicago's Devin Hester to 8 punt return yards in the Packers' 23-10 victory at Lambeau Field.

Masthay averaged 47.6 yards per punt, but more importantly blasted the ball high and inside the 20-yard line on three of his five punts. Hester returned two for gains of 1 and 7 yards, fair caught one and watched another bounce out of bounds at the Chicago 17.

The other was a touchback.

"I thought Tim was outstanding," special teams coach Shawn Slocum said Friday. "I thought he punted the ball very well. He had a couple of long, high balls. I thought he was very effective."

Crabtree made his mark with a 27-yard touchdown reception on a fake field goal. The guy who flipped it to him was Masthay, who now has a perfect career passer rating of 158.3.

Holding Hester in check was particularly valuable early in the game when the Packers offense was struggling. None of Masthay's first three punts - all in the first quarter - was returned.

Perhaps the best punt - and definitely the most risky - was one Slocum allowed to be kicked in bounds with 4 minutes, 19 seconds left in the game and the Packers ahead by 13. Rather than order Masthay to punt the ball out of bounds so Hester didn't have a chance to return it, he let him hit one of his end-over-end "drop" punts.

If Hester had returned that for a touchdown, Crabtree's touchdown would have been long forgotten and Slocum would have gone from genius to idiot in the time it took the Bears star to run 83 yards. But Hester managed just 1 yard.

"I actually stressed him (Masthay) a little bit," Slocum said. "We used the drop punt and that's about as far as we've used that in that situation. It was OK because Robert ( Francois) got down there pretty quick."

In two games, Masthay is averaging 47.9 yards gross and 41.7 net. Only three of his 11 punts have been returned and seven have landed inside the 20.

Health matters

Coach Mike McCarthy said he expected wide receiver Greg Jennings to be ready for the Seattle game Sept. 24.

Jennings was held out of the Bears game because of a groin injury after not practicing the entire week. McCarthy said Jennings, who was listed as doubtful, did not attempt to run before the game to see if he might be able to play.

Jennings suffered the injury late in the San Francisco game and with just four days before the Bears game, the medical staff did not want to risk him worsening the injury. He'll have had two weeks to heal by the time the Seahawks game rolls around.

McCarthy said end C.J. Wilson (groin) also should be available for Seattle.

Linebacker Nick Perry apparently injured his wrist in the San Francisco game and wore a protector on it Thursday night. He was not on the Packers' injury report during the week.

Coordinator Dom Capers said the plan was to get Erik Walden snaps at Perry's position anyway, but Perry appeared to have trouble using his wrist in tight quarters and was limited to spot duty.

Sam's spot

After a slow start in training camp, cornerback Sam Shields has worked himself all the way into a starting spot.

Shields took over for Jarrett Bush against the Bears and wound up matched against the 6-3, 216-pound Alshon Jeffrey, Chicago's rookie receiver. Shields held Jeffrey to one catch for 7 yards, although some of the credit has to go to the Packers' fierce pass rush.

"After looking at the game last night, I thought Sam had one of his best games since he's been here," Capers said. "Obviously we matched up. We had Tramon ( Williams) going with ( Brandon) Marshall. And most of the time he had some help whether it be inside, outside or over the top help.

"So Sam was on his own a lot of times on Jeffery. And I thought he really did a nice job."

Close but no cigar

Offensive coordinator Tom Clements said he wouldn't necessarily call passes that Jordy Nelson, Jermichael Finley and James Jones failed to catch as drops, but he acknowledged that if the passes were caught the offensive day might have looked a lot better than it did.

Nelson clearly dropped a slant route on third down on the first series. He failed to haul in a deep ball in Bears territory on his fingertips on the third series. On the fourth series, Finley dived for a ball down the middle of the field and while the ball hit his hands, he was unable to complete the catch.

"There was the early one that would have allowed us to continue on a drive," Clements said. "Then there was over the middle; would have been a difficult catch. Tight throw. Hopefully, we make more of those catches than we don't."

Finally, Jones had a chance to score on a 23-yard pass, but after making a twisting leap for the ball, let it skim off his hands.

"It was a little high," Clements said. "His arms were extended and it hit his hands, but it was a tough catch. It was slightly overthrown, but over the course of the season hopefully you make more of those than you don't."

His aim isn't true

The first two games have not been vintage Aaron Rodgers.

The guy who set the NFL record for highest passer rating in a single season ranks 17th with an 89.9 mark. He has already thrown two interceptions, a third of what he threw all of last season.

"This is a new year," McCarthy said. "There’s new things, a new center (Jeff Saturday). Every year’s different."

McCarthy said he suspects opponents spent a lot of time studying Rodgers in the off-season to figure out how to slow him down.

"This is a new season, and frankly after two games whether it’s how many times a guy’s played in a game, how many times a guy’s touched the ball, is he tackled, his quarterback rating, to me things don’t really sort themselves out until probably Week 4 or 5,” he said. “So I’m not concerned about Aaron Rodgers."

Let go

Over the past week, tackle Mike McCabe and linebacker Vic So'oto, two players who were waived from injured reserve, cleared waivers. Both are free agents.