Getty General manager Brian Gutekunst (left) of the Green Bay Packers speaks with head coach Matt LaFleur (right) during OTAs in May 2023.
The Green Bay Packers are at a crossroads, and the time has come for the franchise to part ways with cornerback Jaire Alexander — one of its more troublesome superstars.
Alexander took himself out of Green Bay’s must-win road matchup with the Minnesota Vikings this weekend by putting himself before the team during the pre-game coin toss with the Carolina Panthers in Week 15, resulting in a one-game suspension.
The cornerback also suffered a shoulder injury against the Los Angeles Rams on November 5, returning to practice 11 days later. However, he continued to sit out games for several weeks in what ESPN’s Rob Demovsky described on December 22 as a “mystery.”
“[Alexander] returned to practice on Nov. 16 but has been inactive every week. In all, he has missed six straight games because of the shoulder (and three more earlier in the season because of a back injury) but never went on injured reserve, which would have freed up a roster spot for at least four games,” Demovsky wrote. “It’s led to rampant speculation that Alexander, the highest-paid cornerback in the NFL at nearly $22 million a year, is sitting out for reasons beyond his injury and that he’s unhappy with the current direction of the defense.”
Given Alexander’s self-interested behavior and apparent lack of commitment to the organization in just the first season of his four-year, $84 million contract extension, the Packers need to consider trading their best cornerback before his value plummets.
Jaire Alexander’s Injury Issues, Behavioral Problems and Lack of Production Are Bad Signs for Packers
GettyCornerback Jaire Alexander of the Green Bay Packers.
Green Bay is paying Alexander like an elite cover corner, which he has often been over the last few seasons. However, his salary cap hit jumps north of $24 million in 2024 and only goes up from there.
Pro Football Focus ranks Alexander the 54th best cornerback out of 123 players who have seen enough snaps to qualify at the position this season. His lack of performance combined with his injury concerns and questionable behavior create a significant cause for concern, even though Alexander is just 26 years old.
General manager Brian Gutekunst released a statement Wednesday on the team’s decision to suspend the cornerback for its must-win contest against the Vikings.
“Unfortunately, Jaire’s actions prior to the game in Carolina led us to take this step,” Gutekunst said. “As an organization, we have an expectation that everyone puts the team first. While we are disappointed, we had a good conversation with Jaire this morning and fully expect him to learn from this as we move forward together. We look forward to welcoming him back next week as he is a valued member of this team and will continue to be in the future.”
It is hard to know what the state of affairs truly is between Alexander and the organization, but an already strained relationship isn’t likely to be helped by the Packers feeling Alexander wronged them and the cornerback watching his teammates from the sideline in a crucial game against his biggest rival — Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson.
More questionable behavior will only make Alexander harder to deal, and he probably carries something like first-round trade value at the moment, which argues further for the Packers to look for a deal to offload him in 2024.
Jaire Alexander’s Suspension-Worthy Decision Almost Cost Packers Big
GettyCornerback Jaire Alexander of the Green Bay Packers leaves the field after an NFL game against the Minnesota Vikings in January 2023.
Alexander’s first game back from injury came against Carolina, where his antics almost cost the Packers in a big way.
The team did not name Alexander a captain for the contest, which took place in his hometown of Charlotte, but he ran out as a captain of his own accord regardless. The cornerback exacerbated the situation by committing a boneheaded gaffe that could have significantly hurt his team’s chances in what ended up a narrow 3-point win.
Matt Schneidman of The Athletic laid out the events on Wednesday.
Alexander almost cost the Packers a possession because instead of electing to “defer” their choice to receive to the second half, he told the referee he wanted Green Bay’s defense on the field. Technically, Alexander was making the Packers’ choice for the first half — to kick — which would’ve allowed the Panthers to choose what to do for the second half.
And if Alexander chose to kick and put Green Bay’s defense on the field to start the game, Carolina could’ve just chosen to receive again to start the second half. The referee in charge of the coin toss knew what Alexander meant, so he saved him by allowing Green Bay to receive to start the second half.
Alexander was flippant and unapologetic about his actions during an interview following the game, laughing them off as no big deal.
“It’s only suiting,” Alexander said. “I don’t think coach knew I was from Charlotte.”
Alexander’s actions last weekend led to his suspension, and rightly so by all accounts. However, they should also jumpstart discussions about a trade in the front office before a potentially deteriorating situation with an expensive player goes from bad to worse.