Getty The Green Bay Packers will be without one of their star players in Week 4.
The Green Bay Packers head into their Week 4 contest against the New England Patriots relatively healthy. However, the team will be without one of their star players on Sunday, with the former All-Pro being announced as inactive.
Prior to kickoff on Sunday, October 2, the Packers announced their list of inactive players. The list included four rookie draft picks, including former UCLA tackle Sean Rhyan, but former Pro Bowler and All-Pro cornerback Jaire Alexander was also ruled inactive with a groin injury to forced him to leave the previous game against Tampa Bay early.
Left tackle Yosh Nijman was not on the inactive list, which was a pleasant surprise after the former undrafted free agent was added to the injury report with an illness late Saturday night.
With Alexander out, the Packers will have to rely on Eric Stokes, Rasul Douglas, and Keisean Nixon to hold their own at the cornerback position against Brian Hoyer and the Patriots defense.
How Jaire Alexander Became a Packers Star
He wasn’t always expected to be a star, but Alexander came into the NFL and became one of the league’s most electric cornerbacks.
Coming out of high school in Charlotte, North Carolina, Alexander was only a 3-star recruit with little interest from top-tier programs. He received offers from South Carolina and Kansas State, but decided to play for the Louisville Cardinals.
Alexander only played three seasons of college football, but his impact was felt over that span. Along with a second-team All-ACC selection in 2016, Alexander finished his college career with seven interceptions, 15 pass deflections, and 77 total tackles.
With his impressive play speed and movement skills, Alexander was taken in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Packers.
That move has paid out for the Packers since he came to Green Bay, with Alexander earning a second-team All-Pro selection and Pro Bowl nod in 2020. In 51 career games heading into Week 4, Alexander has six career interceptions, 196 total tackles, 45 pass deflections, and two forced fumbles.
The Packers awarded Alexander with a four-year, $84 million extension this past offseason. While he’d has some bad injury luck dating back to last season, the 25-year-old is such an impressive player when on the field that the Packers wanted to make sure to keep him around for the next few seasons.
Will Keisean Nixon Step Up in Alexander’s Absence?
Douglas and Stokes are seasoned defensive backs at this point, but the real question in Green Bay’s secondary against the Patriots will be Keisean Nixon.
Nixon was an undrafted free agent back in 2019 before being picked up by the Las Vegas Raiders. Primarily a special teams player, Nixon has had limited action at cornerback, but was picked up by the Packers this offseason as he reunited with his former special teams coordinator and interim head coach in Rich Bisaccia.
The former Raiders cornerback was forced to step up in Week 3 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when Alexander exited the game with a groin injury. He had a solid game replacing the All-Pro, coming up with a handful of tackles and a big forced fumble to give Aaron Rodgers and company the ball back.
With Alexander inactive against New England, it will be another opportunity for Nixon to prove himself on Sunday.