GREEN BAY -- The release of veteran halfbacks Noah Herron and Vernand Morency headlined the 22 personnel moves made Saturday by the Green Bay Packers, who got down to the NFL-mandated 53-man roster limit by cutting 19 players and placing three more on injured reserve.

Releasing Herron and Morency means rookie free agent halfback Kregg Lumpkin made the team. The Packers will enter the season with only three halfbacks (starter Ryan Grant, backup Brandon Jackson and Lumpkin) instead of four while keeping two fullbacks (Korey Hall and John Kuhn).

The Packers are also in the market for a new long-snapper after undrafted rookie J.J. Jansen was placed on season-ending injured reserve with a knee injury. Jansen suffered a torn lateral collateral ligament in his left knee during the Packers' preseason finale against Tennessee and will require surgery.

Thomas Gafford, who went to camp with the Packers and was competing with Jansen for the job before being released to make room on the roster for Grant, was among the 20 players released by the Chicago Bears Saturday and is likely to be claimed by the Packers.

Also released by the Packers were wide receivers Jake Allen, Johnny Quinn, Taj Smith and Brett Swain; cornerbacks Joe Porter and Scorpio Babers; defensive tackles Conrad Bolston, Alfred Malone and Daniel Muir; offensive linemen Brennen Carvalho, Ryan Keenan and Orrin Thompson; fullback Corey White; safety Tyrone Culver; linebackers Spencer Havner and Danny Lansanah; and tight end Joey Haynos.

Defensive tackle Rodney Allen and center Junius Coston were placed on injured reserve along with Jansen.

For the second consecutive year, Packers general manager Ted Thompson did not address reporters following the moves, breaking with precedent set by GM Ron Wolf and coach/GM Mike Sherman. Thompson will address reporters at 2 p.m. Sunday.

The Packers can establish their eight-man practice squad after 3 p.m. Sunday. Among the leading candidates are Lansanah, Haynos and Swain, the only draft pick released.

Fifth-round pick Breno Giacomini, who gave up back-to-back sack-fumble plays against the Titans, was the ninth offensive lineman to make the roster, although his spot may not be secure given the Packers will make at least one more roster move to add a long-snapper before the team's Sept. 8 regular-season opener against the Minnesota Vikings and could make a second move to add a defensive tackle via a trade or the waiver wire.

Releasing Malone, Bolston and Muir and putting Rodney Allen on IR leaves the Packers with just three true defensive tackles after keeping six at the position in the final cutdown last year.

The three tackles are Ryan Pickett, who missed all of camp with a hamstring injury; Colin Cole, who started all four preseason games in place of Pickett; and Johnny Jolly, who could be subject to a league suspension in connection with his pending felony drug possession charge in Houston stemming from a July 8 incident.

Defensive tackle Justin Harrell, the team's 2007 first-round draft pick, is on the physically unable to perform list and will miss at least the first six games.

While the team kept only nine defensive linemen, it kept seven linebackers: Starters Nick Barnett, A.J. Hawk and Brady Poppinga; top backup Brandon Chillar, the team's only offseason free-agent signing; Abdul Hodge and Desmond Bishop, who both had outstanding training camps; and special teams standout Tracy White.

Keeping seven linebackers likely cost Herron or Morency their roster spot. Both players could be of interest to the Detroit Lions, who have just two halfbacks -- rookie Kevin Smith and veteran Tatum Bell -- on their roster after cutting 20 players and placing halfbacks Aveion Cason and Brian Calhoun, a former University of Wisconsin athlete, on injured reserve.

As expected, the Packers kept both their rookie backup quarterbacks, second-round pick Brian Brohm and seventh-round pick Matt Flynn.

By releasing Culver, the Packers opted to keep Charlie Peprah, who missed all but the first week of camp with a hamstring injury. Peprah is the fourth safety, behind starters Nick Collins and Atari Bigby and top backup Aaron Rouse, while versatile Jarrett Bush will serve as the fifth cornerback and fifth safety.