GREEN BAY, Wis. -- The Joe Callahan story warmed hearts, and Eddie Lacy's brief but productive appearance excited the masses. They formed a nice prologue to the story of the Green Bay Packers' preseason.

Maybe next week we'll get an idea if the offense has taken any meaningful steps after the shambles of last season.

Without Aaron Rodgers, Randall Cobb, Jordy Nelson, Corey Linsley -- and, yes, even Jeff Janis -- in Friday's preseason-opening win over the Cleveland Browns, there was little evidence to support the claim that this offense will return to its usual place among the NFL's most productive after it slipped all the way to 23rd last season.

No one has even seen enough of the regular starters together in practice, three weeks into training camp, to make that determination.

"I don't know what the plan is for next week, but hopefully we get Aaron back and Randall back and we start building a little of that momentum that you need going into the regular season," said Packers right guard T.J. Lang, who began practicing just last week after recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. "Right now we're just working on fundamentals, working on going out there and playing good football. Until we get everybody back, the guys who are filling have been doing a nice job of keeping this thing running."

According to Rodgers, he will play Thursday against the Oakland Raiders. He said on the statewide telecast: "I'm going to play next week."

Coach Mike McCarthy was only slightly less committal.

"I don't have a set plan, but I think history will tell you he'll play next week," McCarthy said after the game. "We'll see what happens in practice Sunday and Monday. That's the most important part. We're into a six-day week getting ready for Oakland, so we've got to make some adjustments. We'll see what the medical report is tomorrow."

Three preseason games remain. But what was supposed to be an extra-long summer of football, with the Hall of Fame game (which, of course, never kicked off), has turned into a ticking clock on getting the offense ready for Week 1 at Jacksonville.

Cobb dropped out of practice last week because of a calf injury and was one of 17 scratches for Friday’s 17-11 win over the Browns. Nelson (knee) and Linsley (hamstring) remain on the physically unable to perform list with no sign of when they will return to practice. And now there's concern over the hand injury Janis sustained late in Wednesday's practice. He wasn't in the locker room after the game.

For now, Callahan's two-minute touchdown drive -- the Packers' only touchdown drive of the game -- in his first NFL start and Lacy's four-carry, 24-yard performance will have to carry the day.

"Obviously it was all pretty vanilla stuff," Lang said. "We didn't put much time into the game plan."