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GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Packers coach Mike McCarthy will give his team a head start out West to prepare for the NFC title game against the Seattle Seahawks.

Green Bay plans to leave for Seattle on Friday, one day ahead of when the team would usually fly out for Sunday road games.

McCarthy said Monday that his training staff has studied the impact of traveling a day early. He says it fits the pattern of some of the other changes in training and sports sciencethemed conditioning that the Packers have instituted this season.

Green Bay’s season started with a trip to Seattle and a 36- 16 loss in the league opener.

McCarthy also says that quarterback Aaron Rodgers came out of the game feeling well. Rodgers is dealing with a lingering left calf injury.

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Man overboard

PLANTATION, Fla. (AP) — Former NFL fullback Rob Konrad says he shouldn’t be here.

Konrad made the comment Monday at an emotional news conference where he talked about his death-defying 16-hour swim to shore last week after he fell off his fishing boat.

The 38-year-old Konrad’s escape was a testament to willpower and world-class athleticism. The first news reports of his adventure last week received world-wide publicity.

Konrad, who played for the Miami Dolphins from 1999 to 2004, said he had been around boats since he was a child growing up on Boston’s North Shore. His boat was on autopilot when he fell off it while fishing alone nine miles from shore.

He swam to Palm Beach, covering a distance of 27 miles before ringing the doorbell of an oceanfront home for help.

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Carolina Panthers

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s office has announced that Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy’s jury trial has been set for Feb. 9 in Superior Court.

Hardy is appealing his conviction on two counts of domestic violence last July.

The case is being prosecuted by the DA’s domestic violence team.

Hardy was a Pro Bowl player for the Panthers in 2013 after tying a team record with 15 sacks. He was signed as Carolina’s franchise player and made $13.1 million despite playing in just one game in 2014.

He spent the majority of the season on the commissioner’s exempt list.

The 26-year-old Hardy will become an unrestricted free agent in March, and some teammates have already said they want the Panthers to re-sign him.



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