Getty Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander.
Green Bay Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander has been a star for their defense over the past several seasons, but at least one insider seems to be questioning whether he is “fully engaged” with the team heading into the NFL playoffs.
Earlier in the week, ESPN’s Rob Demovsky jumped on Dallas-based radio station 105.3 The Fan to preview the Packers’ upcoming wild-card matchup with the Dallas Cowboys and made a few frank comments about Alexander and his “weird, weird” 2023 season.
Host Shan Shariff asked Demovsky to fill in the blank: “Jaire Alexander is ..?”
“All about Jaire Alexander,” Demovsky responded bluntly. He then continued with his criticism when asked if he thinks Alexander is a “great” cornerback on the field.
“I think when he wants to be and when he’s fully engaged, and I’m just not sure that’s where he is right now. It’s been a weird, weird run for him. And I could say a weird dude, too, to finish that sentence. He’s a different guy. I mean, I still think he’s a good player. I just don’t know if he’s ever going to be the player he was in like 2020, 2021 when he was an All-Pro guy.”
Is Jaire Alexander’s Future in Question for Packers?
Demovsky saying he finds Alexander to be “weird” isn’t really surprising. Alexander is weird, and that’s not a bad thing at all. Just this week, he crashed a local news reporters’ segment outside of Lambeau Field to hype up the Packers. The whole interaction was fun and illustrated one of the reasons why many Packers fans adore him.
The more critical parts of Demovsky’s assessment do raise some eyebrows, though. He is a veteran reporter who has been covering the Packers for decades and is inside the locker room regularly, so it counts for something when he jumps on a radio show and openly questions how engaged the former second-team All-Pro cornerback is.
Objectively, Alexander has gone through a weird and rough season with the Packers. He missed nine regular-season games due to injuries and sat out another down the stretch while serving a one-game suspension for conduct deemed detrimental to the team. He has also struggled to live up to an All-Pro level of play throughout 2023 when he has been on the field; although, in fairness, the defense as a whole has been a mess at times.
Adding to the strangeness of the situation, ESPN’s Adam Schefter has also indicated the Packers “could explore a trade” with Alexander during the 2024 offseason. He wrote on December 30 that a “long-term decision regarding the future of Jaire Alexander is expected to revolve around the $8 million roster bonus owed to [him] on March 20.”
Does that mean the Packers will be moving on from him in 2024? No, but it does add another layer of suspicion to what has been going on with Alexander throughout 2024.
Jaire Alexander is a ‘Game-Time Decision’ vs. Cowboys
Speaking of uncertainty, the Packers are unsure as to whether they will even have Alexander available against the Cowboys in their wild-card matchup on Sunday.
According to head coach Matt LaFleur, Alexander “stepped on somebody’s foot and rolled his ankle” during Wednesday’s jog-through practice. The Packers then opted to hold him out of their final two practices, casting more doubt on his status for Sunday.
Officially, the team listed him as “questionable” in its final injury report, but LaFleur made it clear on January 12 that the team “legitimately” is not sure if he will play.
“We don’t know,” LaFleur said Friday afternoon. “We’re just trying to give him up to game time to figure it out. He will legitimately be a game-time decision.”
Corey Ballentine and seventh-round rookie Carrington Valentine are the likely starters on the boundary if the Packers are not able to clear Alexander before game time. They will have tough tasks trying to slow down wide receiver CeeDee Lamb — voted a first-team All-Pro for 2023 — and a Cowboys passing offense that ranks third in the league.
The Packers will kick off against the Cowboys at 4:25 p.m. Eastern Time on January 14.
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