Getty Jaire Alexander, Packers
It has not exactly been the most normal of stretches for Green Bay Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander, who is once again going viral for a rather unorthodox decision. This time around, though, there was nothing detrimental to the Packers and there will be no suspensions. But still … weird.
A post on Twitter/X—several of them, actually—went viral this morning in the wake of the Packers’ clinching of a playoff berth by beating the Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field. The post, from the account with the handle “FIRE JOE BARRY,” showed local reporter Emily Roberts of WBAY news in Green Bay standing outside Lambeau Field doing a live report on the upcoming Packers-Cowboys game.
She seemed shocked when a man approached from behind, nodding and declaring in a silly voice, “Just here to tell you … Pack is back!” The man then pointed up, put on sunglasses, made another silly noise, and walked out of the camera shot.
Jaire is 1 of 1 😂😂😂
The stunned Roberts kept her composure and said, “You heard it here from a fan right here, the Pack is back.”
Of course, it was not just any fan. It was Packers star cornerback Jaire Alexander.
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Within hours after the video was posted, it had registered more than a million views, and other versions of it had done likewise. It was a harmless and funny interaction, the kind of thing that generally makes football in Green Bay unique—no matter the money NFL players get, no matter the fame they achieve, when they play for the Packers, they are always part of the fabric of the community.
Alexander, though, has had something of an odd relationship with the Packers this year. At his best, he is among the top cornerbacks in the NFL, a shutdown cover man who was the team’s first-round pick in 2018. He was rewarded for that talent in May 2022, when he signed a four-year, $84 million contract with the Packers, making him the highest-paid corner in the NFL.
He was rated the top corner in the league by Pro Football Focus in 2020, and was rated eighth in the league last year.
But he has struggled to stay on the field this year with injuries to his groin and shoulder. He appeared in six games, and was back on the field for Week 18’s win over Chicago, in which he played all 48 of the defense’s snaps.
“It feels great,” Alexander said at his locker on Sunday. “It’s very deserving and rewarding for us. We battled through a lot this season, but to get here, can’t put it in words.”
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Well, “Pack is back,” would be some words for it. Regardless, Alexander’s viral moment on Channel 2 comes on the heels of his truly bizarre suspension in Week 17. His action at that time was similar, in a way, to what happened on Monday morning, in that he interjected himself into a place in which hew as not wanted or meant to be.
The suspension, though, came thanks to Alexander naming himself a team captain in the Week 16 game against the Panthers and inserting himself into the pregame coin toss. Coach Matt LaFleur told reporters that there was more behind the suspension than the coin-toss incident, but did not elaborate on what.
Alexander, for his part, said he did not know what the beg deal was.
“Yeah, I was surprised by the suspension,” Alexander said when he returned to practice. “I thought maybe I’d get fined.”
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Packers ‘Fan’ Jaire Alexander Goes Viral for Crashing Live TV Spot