"The goal is for Green Bay running backs Ryan Grant and James Starks to get an equal amount of rushing attempts Thursday night against New Orleans.

That's the plan for now, anyway.

With a healthy Grant back after missing nearly all of the 2010 season, the Packers are faced with the new challenge of merging his comeback with the progression of Starks, whose late-season emergence as a rookie paced the Packers through the playoffs.

And the only way to figure it out literally is to let things play out.

"We know what they can do," first-year running backs coach Jerry Fontenot said. "It's just a matter of getting them comfortable and making sure they've gotten enough reps to do it. The only way I see them doing that is getting them as equal of work as I possibly can."

Grant ran for 83 yards in 18 carries (4.6-yard average) in the preseason, his first football action after suffering a season-ending ankle injury in the opener a year ago.

"We'll bring Ryan back in and see how he handles the game and the contact," offensive coordinator Joe Philbin said. "He looks fine. He looks like he did before he ever got injured.""