Rob Demovsky, ESPN Staff Writer 10y

Packers to use tech firm to study injuries

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Last month, ESPN.com's Kevin Seifert brought you the story of how GPS-based technology is being used in sports -- including by more than a dozen NFL teams -- to study injuries and aid in their prevention.

Since then, one of the companies featured in the piece announced it has added the Green Bay Packers to its list of clients.

On Friday, Catapult Sports, an Australian-based firm that compiles live data on athletic exertion, welcomed the Packers in a message it posted on its Twitter account.

How, exactly, the Packers plan to use the company's services -- which among other things can measure an athlete's level of exertion and use it to gauge if that player is at greater risk for an injury -- is not immediately known.

On Catapult's website, Buffalo Bills strength coach Eric Ciano explained how he uses the data.

"The number one goal of this system right now is trying to help prevent injury as well as help us with the rehab process," Ciano said. "There are a lot of different things that goes in to it, but the biggest thing is 'how can we monitor guys on the field to help us get the information?'"

A recent study by Football Outsiders that appeared on ESPN.comInsider indicated the Packers were among the most injured teams in the NFL the past two seasons.

McCarthy took that a step further when he said recently that in his eight seasons as head coach, he’s had only two truly healthy teams -- the 13-3 team of 2007 and the 15-1 team of 2011.

We know from listening to McCarthy talk after injuries have befallen his team year after year that he has long been willing to examine all aspects of his team's training regimen.

"You got to grade yourself on, did you hit the target of training your football team right through this new CBA schedule?" McCarthy told reporters last month at the NFL annual meetings. "And you look at injuries; you look at your outcome. I feel like I haven't hit the target that I want to hit. So with that I'll continue to change and adjust and emphasize the things I feel we need to do and that will be evident when they get back here in the offseason program.

"The offseason program is going to be different than it was the last two years and training camp will be also."

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