As some of you know, I was in my fourth season of covering the Packers this season for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel when I came to the Globe on Oct. 25 (I covered the Dolphins before that). So I'm a little familiar with the Packers' personnel.

It's becoming increasingly likely that Aaron Rodgers will not start at quarterback for the Packers on Sunday night because of a concussion. He did not practice again today, and from what coach Mike McCarthy said, Rodgers still hasn't been cleared to look at the playbook, take part in meetings or watch film of the Patriots. Rodgers might not even make the trip.

"I think it will be clear by the time we travel to New England what we're going to do as far as Aaron Rodgers is concerned," McCarthy said. "I don't want to take this to the game. It's not going to be a game-time decision."

Enter backup Matt Flynn, a seventh-round pick in 2008.

Flynn rose from third string at the start of training camp to second string at the start of the season after beating out second-round pick Brian Brohm, who had a terrible camp.

Since then he's gotten two stints of significant playing time.

The first came in his fourth game a rookie in 2008 when Rodgers went out with a shoulder injury against the Buccaneers on Sept. 28. It did not go well.

Flynn entered with a 21-20 lead early in the fourth quarter and had two series: three plays for 2 yards, and four plays for 6. Flynn completed 2 of 5 passes for 6 yards as the Packers lost 30-21. He was skittish and his three incompletions didn't come close to the mark.

And then this past Sunday he entered on the final drive before halftime against the Lions. Flynn's drives:

• Three plays, minus-7 yards, punt.
• Eight plays, 48 yards, field goal.
• 11 plays, 81 yards, interception from the 4-yard line.
• Three plays, 5 yards, punt.
• Four plays, 3 yards, punt.
• 10 plays, 60 yards, downs.

Flynn finished 15 of 26 for 177 yards and one interception (62.5 rating).

The Packers have always maintained supreme confidence in Flynn's ability to direct this team if Rodgers went down. McCarthy is one of the best developers of young quarterbacks around, and he has always touted Flynn's improvement during his career.

"He is a good football player," McCarthy said during the offseason. "He is a quarterback that just continues to get better. He has always had the instincts. He is a winner. He has proven that throughout his career, and every time he gets opportunities, he takes advantage of it. Just the throw he made today in the move-the-ball period, I thought was exceptional. I'm very pleased with the way Matt is playing right now."

Flynn, who has gotten most of his work in the exhibition games, was 55 of 85 (58.8 percent) for 583 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions for a 77.7 rating this past summer.

I'm not an NFL scout so I don't have a keen eye for projecting guys out -- I'm better at assessing players where they are at that moment -- but I've thought Flynn, since a shaky rookie season, has improved immensely to the point he can be a solid backup. He can finish off some games for you even against tough opponents, and could probably win a few starts against some teams with a full week of preparation. But I don't think he's starter material in the NFL and I don't think he's capable of beating a team of the Patriots' caliber, especially with a poor running game and a beat up defensive front seven.

Flynn is a very smart, athletic player with decent arm strength and can deliver the ball just about anywhere when he's given a clean look. He tends to float passes and is a little slow in his progressions when forced away from his primary target and crowded. Flynn's deep touch is adequate but he prefers to throw on a line. He tends to favor checkdowns.

That being said, Bob McGinn, my former colleague and mentor (along with Tom Silverstein) at the Journal Sentinel, has thought more of Flynn than I have. McGinn and Silverstein are two of the best and most experienced beat writers in the country.

And McGinn has the best front office sources in the league. This summer he quoted some on Flynn in a very positive profile in the second week of training camp. A sampling of some of the opinions:

"If I was a GM and I needed a quarterback that's who I would go get," an executive in personnel for an NFL club said in unsolicited remarks in April. "I think he's the best backup in the league.

"Colt McCoy isn't as good as Flynn. In fact, if you threw him in, I'm not so sure that in two or three years he wouldn't be every bit as good as Tony Romo. Maybe better. They said he didn't have a big arm but all he did was win a national championship. He's smart and he's tough, and when he came out he was a high 4.6 (40-yard dash guy) guy."

Another:

"I wanted to draft him, but we didn't do anything about it," the scout said. "Look. That guy is the next Mark Brunell. They will get a high pick for him some day."

So at least some NFL decision makers have the opinion that Flynn could be very similar to Matt Cassel, the former Patriot backup who parlayed a successful stint when Tom Brady was hurt in '08 into a big contract and starting role with the Chiefs. Cassel won the first game he entered that season 17-10 against the Chiefs, and also won his first career start the following week 19-10 over the Jets as he completed 16 of 23 passes for 165 yards.

Just something to think about.