GREEN BAY — Aaron Rodgers plans to play Sunday, even if it means doing so with limited or no practice time or receiving a pain-killing injection in his throwing shoulder shortly before kickoff.

But Rodgers will not play against the Atlanta Falcons at Lambeau Field just because the guy who used to be the Green Bay Packers starting quarterback never missed a game.

While much of Packer Nation might be comparing Rodgers to ironman Brett Favre, who started 253 straight regular-season games for the Packers during his 16-year career in Green Bay, Rodgers is focused on making his fifth consecutive start because he believes he gives his team its best chance to win.

"Listen, I want to play every game," Rodgers said after missing virtually all of Wednesday's practice. "(It's not) like, 'Oh, you've got to play because Brett played 250 in a row.' I don't need that. I have pride in myself. I've played with some serious injuries before, so that's personal pride. I don't need any extra fuel to play. I want to play extremely badly."

Whether Rodgers' right shoulder — injured when he was tackled from behind while stretching for a first down during a third-quarter scramble against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday — is strong enough to allow him to play is another issue entirely.

During Wednesday's practice in the Don Hutson Center, Rodgers handed off a half-dozen times at the start of a 45-minute jog-through period before giving way to the team's two rookie quarterbacks, backup Matt Flynn and No. 3 Brian Brohm. He didn't throw a single pass before grabbing his car keys and departing through a back exit of the building when individual drills began, returning to Lambeau Field for rehabilitation work.

If Rodgers, who suffered a broken foot in 2006 that ended his season and a torn hamstring last season, can't go against the Falcons, Flynn would start, coach Mike McCarthy said.

"Hopefully, Aaron gets back and he's ready to go," Flynn said.

Passing problem

While pain is an issue, the greater concern for Rodgers is a lack of strength in the shoulder. McCarthy said Rodgers has full range of motion in the shoulder now that the swelling has gone down, but his shoulder wasn't strong enough to allow him to practice Wednesday, as the coach hoped earlier this week.

"When you have an injury like I did, that's the most important thing — getting that strength back. Once I get that back, I feel like I'll be able to play," Rodgers said. "It's not quite all the way there yet, that's obviously why I'm not practicing. Once I get that back, then I'll be able to play. Hopefully, this weekend."

McCarthy said team physician Pat McKenzie recommended Rodgers not throw Wednesday or Thursday, then be re-examined again Friday morning. While his team practices, Rodgers' rehab includes lifting light weights and throwing a tennis ball, gradually working his way up to throwing heavier objects. He had a pair of rehab sessions Tuesday sandwiched around a shoulder massage.

McCarthy didn't rule out starting Rodgers on Sunday even if he can't practice fully Friday.

"I'm going to give him every possible chance to play in the game," McCarthy said. "We're not going to do anything crazy. I'm not going to ask any player to put himself in harm's way for one game, especially this early in the year.

"I know he's young and there may be a concern about him missing practice reps and so forth, but like I said, I'm going to give him every chance to play in the game against Atlanta."

Rodgers said he was in excruciating pain Sunday — including when he threw a 48-yard touchdown to Greg Jennings and on the loss-clinching interception to Gaines Adams on his final pass — and it wasn't until Tuesday that he finally got a good night's sleep.

"Sunday night, I slept horrible. Some of that was thinking about the game, but a lot of it was really was about (the pain in) the shoulder," Rodgers said. "Then Monday night I slept a little bit better, (Tuesday) night I slept real well. That's kind of an indication that things are, at least in the big picture, getting better. The swelling's going down. But now really, it's really about the strength. If I get the strength back, then I can throw. I'll be able to play."

If the strength returns but the pain does not subside, Rodgers said he is willing to take a pain-killing shot in order to play. He said he spoke earlier this week to his mentor, former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer, who said he suffered 10 shoulder dislocations during his 14-year career and never missed the next game because of them.

"There's different (pain-killing) options once you get to later in the week," said Rodgers, who confirmed that his injury was a dislocation — albeit "a little bit different" than typical dislocation — in the joint and not a separation, where his shoulder ligaments would have been stretched or torn.

Pain-killing injections are common in the NFL, though players don't usually talk about them. Only after some prodding did cornerback Charles Woodson admit recently that he's been taking pre-game shots to dull the pain of the broken toe on his right foot.

"(The question becomes), 'What do you want to put into your arm?' Cortisone is not kind of the typical thing used for something like this. That can be detrimental," Rodgers said. "I don't know. I'm just talking hypothetical. Hopefully, I won't have to shoot up, the strength will come back in the next couple days, I'll be able to throw Friday and go from there."

'I'll do anything'

In the meantime, Rodgers is attending regular meetings, watching extra film of both the Falcons and of practice (to watch Flynn and Brohm run the Packers' plays against different defensive alignments) and hoping his consecutive-starts streak doesn't end at four.

"I'll do anything to get on the field, so if that's what it takes, if I still have mobility in my shoulder, I'll be up for anything. And I'm sure we'll talk about those things come Friday," said Rodgers, who last started a game despite limited practice time in college, when he played for Cal against Southern Cal with a broken index finger on his right hand.

"There's definitely pain. (But) the pain is something I feel like I can deal with. It's the strength. If I don't have the strength to be able to make the throws that I know I'm capable of making, then it doesn't really matter how much pain I'm in. But if I have the strength, I think I can deal with the pain."