AP

This is the second straight year that Packers tackle Derek Sherrod has started on the physically unable to perform list, but initial signs from his return to practice this week suggest a happier ending this time around.

Sherrod was shut down for the year after two weeks of practice last year because he was still suffering complications related to his extended recovery from a broken leg. This time around, Sherrod is practicing without a limp and offensive line coach James Campen said that the difference from last year was night and day from 2012.

“Big difference,” Campen said, via Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. “It’s not even close. The gimpy word is gone.”

After missing so much time, Sherrod isn’t likely to be ready to play right away. If he avoids setbacks over the next couple of weeks, however, it would seem likely that the Packers would activate him from the PUP list in order to get him as much practice time as possible at the very least. If his recovery progresses fast enough for him to make an impact during games as well, all the better for a 2011 first-round pick who has spent scant time on the field since starting his professional career.