Clay Matthews made some news Wednesday when he quipped that the Green Bay Packers should have never put quarterback Aaron Rodgers on injured reserve, especially after watching his friend and teammate work in the rehab group over the last week.

Rodgers almost certainly isn’t ready to play in an actual game right now, but that’s a hypothetical discussion for another time. More importantly, Matthews continues to talk as if Rodgers will be back from his broken collarbone in two weeks when the Packers travel to Carolina to play the Panthers.

Rodgers – who went through an extensive throwing session on Sunday night in Pittsburgh – is eligible to come off IR starting in Week 15.

“The way he’s coming along, some of the balls he’s throwing, accuracy-wise, everything a quarterback has to do, is pretty remarkable,” Matthews said, according to Tom Silverstein of PackersNews.com. “So, it would be really neat to see him out there, but unfortunately, he’ll have to wait two weeks prior to coming back.”

Later, Matthews once again mentioned two more games without Rodgers.

“Part of that is if you’re looking at the big picture, I know no game is bigger than the next one. But we have to win these next two, and when Aaron’s back at the helm, we have a pretty good squad. That’s the reality of it,” Matthews said.

He spoke in the same optimistic tone and used similar language regarding a possible return date after Rodgers was spotted going through his first public rehab session during a practice ahead of Week 11.

It’s possible Matthews is simply holding out hope that Rodgers is able to come back in two weeks, without the aid of any inside information or knowledge. By now, everyone on the roster understands that Rodgers is eligible to come off IR in Week 15.

Or maybe Matthews knows a few extra details on the progress of Rodgers’ recovery and is more certain – and not just hopeful – that the Packers quarterback will be back to play the Panthers in two weeks.

Either way, momentum seems to be building for Rodgers to play again this season. He needs his collarbone to cooperate, and the Packers to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cleveland Browns the next two weeks. But Matthews sure sounds like a teammate who believes Rodgers will be under center when the Packers play the Panthers on Dec. 17.