Greg Jennings finally has his answer.

"Rectus abdominal tear," Jennings told a large group of reporters at his locker Thursday.

The question in Jennings' head was why a lingering groin injury was not healing faster.  After missing four games Jennings went to Philadelphia to get a second opinion from an abdominal specialist.  He was diagnosed with an abdominal tear of the muscle that runs vertically through the "six pack" area on the stomach.

 "The way he described it to me was two people pulling on the end of a rope," Jennings said of his injury.  It starts to fray.  The more tugging, the more fraying, which means the more tearing occurs."

The two-time Pro Bowler had two options, surgery or an injection.  Jennings says he was told the injection would mask most of the pain, but wasn't a guarantee to allow him to play at a top level, and would certainly not fix the problem.  To him, surgery was an easy choice.  Number 85 says he will go under the knife next Tuesday for what he described as a 20-25 minute outpatient procedure.

As far as returning to the field, Jennings wasn't interest in offering up a timetable.

"They give you certain time frames," said Jennings.  "One week, two weeks, three weeks, four weeks, whatever the case may be.  At the end of the day it's going to be determining whether I feel good or not.  But not season ending."

Word was slow to circulate through the locker room Thursday, when asked about Jennings being out after opting surgery Bryan Bulaga and Randall Cobb said it was the first they heard of it.  Cobb responded with a familiar "next guy up" response.

"We know what Greg brings to the table and it's going to be hard not having him out there," Cobb said.  "We've had a couple weeks where we have sustained some success, so we need to continue that and keep the chemistry going between all of us."

So why have the Packers had so much success filling in for injured players in recent years?

"I think it has to do a lot with the coaches and the way they prepare guys," said Bulaga.  "Every guy from the top down gets prepared the same exact way.  So when guys that aren't starting games and something does happen, a guy is able to jump in and do the job."

Jennings has just 12 receptions and one touchdown this season.  A big question moving forward is what happens when he hits free agency after this year?

"Free agency will take care of itself when the time comes," Jennings said.  Right now I have to take care of myself."

So what does Jennings' future hold in Green Bay?  That question will remain unanswered for the time being.