GREEN BAY, Wis. -- The Green Bay Packers finished last season with three quarterbacks on their roster.
But they haven't started a season that way since 2008, Aaron Rodgers' first year as the starter. That season, general manager Ted Thompson gave coach Mike McCarthy a pair of backups -- rookies Matt Flynn and Brian Brohm.
If everything works out, McCarthy would like something similar again this season.
In fact, he would like that every year. His ideal quarterback situation would be three on the roster and a fourth as a developmental prospect on the practice squad. He knows the constraints of a 53-man roster do not always allow for that, but it will be on his wish-list again this season.
The first step toward that is re-signing Flynn, something that appears likely. There's no market for Flynn as a starter, and the Packers would like him to return to compete with Scott Tolzien for the backup job.
Whatever Flynn's failings were in Seattle and Oakland, where he had chances to start, he proved once again last season that he could function in a backup role in Green Bay, where he first served as Rodgers' backup from 2008-2011.
The Packers went 2-2-1 last season in games Flynn finished during Rodgers' time on the sideline with a broken collarbone.
"I'd like to have Matt back," McCarthy told reporters this week at the NFL annual meetings.
"I thought Matt was a good addition to our football team. I have great respect and admiration for him, just being around him a lot on a positional basis. Yeah, I'm hoping financially it works out."
Flynn's agent, Bill Johnson, did not return a message left on Friday.
"Do I like Matt Flynn in the quarterback room?" McCarthy said. "Absolutely. Not only Matt as a player, but there's value he has, he's been there, he's got experience, his relationship with Aaron. He carries a lot of value. That's added value. But also you have to continue to improve. How do you improve? Competition."
The Packers expect Tolzien, who started two games last season, to make significant strides this offseason. They like his arm strength and poise but need to refine some of his techniques. That won't begin until the offseason program kicks off on April 22. Before the current CBA went into effect in 2011, McCarthy could begin his annual quarterback training sessions in March.
"Scott Tolzien is back in town, and he can't go to the Hutson Center and throw," McCarthy said. "We're in a different era training quarterbacks and your specialists. I would hope we'd have four in camp. But we'll see how the whole 90-man roster thing shakes out."