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Shields coming along; Nelson, Kuhn ready to play

Mike McCarthy said on Thursday that he likes the progress CB Sam Shields is making as he comes back from shin and ankle injuries, but it doesn’t sound like Shields will play much, if at all, on Sunday.

Shields was taking snaps as a receiver on the offensive scout team, which is an indication he’s working his way back but isn’t being pegged for a key role on defense just yet. Shields returned to practice for the first time on Monday after missing the last three games. Thursday was the most work Shields has done in practice thus far.

“That’s what he needs, he needs to get out there and put that foot in the ground,” McCarthy said. “I definitely felt that starting Monday to today, he looked much better.”

Elsewhere on defense, DE Mike Neal (ankle) was a limited participant in practice, but he “looked good,” according to McCarthy. “We’ll see how he responds tomorrow, but I like what I saw from Mike Neal.”

On the offensive side, WR Jordy Nelson (hamstring, foot) and FB John Kuhn (hamstring) were both limited participants in practice, but both players told reporters in the locker room they fully expect to play.

Nelson said he spent the bye week in Green Bay getting treatment on his ankle and foot so that he could return to practice this week, and he said everything “feels great.” Kuhn admitted it was eating away at him to miss a couple of games, but he’s ready to go now.

“I thought John looked really good,” McCarthy said. “I watched him throughout the blitz pickup, third down and red zone.”

TE Andrew Quarless, on the other hand, sat out practice. McCarthy said it’s expected Quarless’ knee will not be healthy enough to practice on certain days, and Thursday “was one of those days.” The practice was in full pads.