Green Bay Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon says he is hanging it up as a return specialist one day after fumbling his opening-drive kickoff return in the team’s 22-10 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC wild-card game.
Nixon had plenty to say about his controversial fumble during the team’s end-of-season locker cleanout on January 13, but he also expressed discontentment with his role as a kick returner and said he plans to speak to the coaching staff about no longer doing it.
“I’m kind of over it,” Nixon told reporters Monday, via The Athletic’s Matt Schenidman. “I don’t really want to do it no more. There’s going to be talks with the coaching staff and stuff like that, but I think it’s over with for me.”
Nixon received first-team All-Pro recognition for his return abilities in both 2022 and 2023, but he found less success in the first year of the NFL’s new kickoff rules in 2024. While he averaged a career-high 29.3 yards per return for the Packers, he fielded nearly half as many kicks (18) as his previous seasons and finished with just 592 return yards.
Nixon’s reason for abandoning the kick returner role is more straightforward, though.
“I want to be CB1,” Nixon said. “CB1 is not doing kick returns. That’s just what it is.”
Does Keisean Nixon’s Stance Change Packers’ Plans?
Nixon played a significant part in the Packers’ success during the 2024 season, moving away from his defensive role in the slot to play full-time perimeter cornerback for their defense — partly because All-Pro starter Jaire Alexander missed 10 games with injuries. Not only did he give up a career-low 57.5 opposing completion percentage in coverage, but he also had 88 tackles, three sacks, eight tackles for loss and seven pass breakups.
That said, the Packers may have second thoughts about his long-term future if he takes a hard stance on not wanting to return kicks for the team following the 2024 season.
Nixon has performed well on defense over his three seasons with the Packers, but his kick return abilities were at the forefront of why Green Bay signed him to a three-year, $18 million contract extension during the 2024 offseason. They also believed he could play a greater role on defense but not so much so that they paid him starter money.
Then again, as long as Nixon doesn’t demand a new contract, there is no reason not to indulge his desire to chase the No. 1 cornerback job. He will make roughly $14 million over the next two seasons on his current contract, and they have significant questions about how to handle the cornerback position moving forward with Alexander’s future up in the air and former first-round pick Eric Stokes likely to test free agency in March.
While the Packers may wish to talk further with Nixon about his return role, they have little reason to move on from him during the offseason — unless he forces his way out.
Keisean Nixon’s Fumble Remains a Controversial Call
Unfortunately, Nixon’s fumble on the opening drive against the Eagles will go down in infamy for how it set the tone in the Packers’ latest early-round exit in the postseason. Whether the turnover should have stood is the subject of great controversy, though.
Nixon fumbled the ball at the Packers’ own 28-yard line after a helmet-to-helmet hit from Eagles linebacker Oren Burks — a former third-round pick for Green Bay — but the over-the-top camera angle of the play seemed to show Nixon regain possession. When officials reviewed the play, though, they felt Philadelphia recovered the ball and upheld the original call on the field. The Eagles scored a touchdown three plays later.
After the game, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said he felt Nixon had recovered the ball and threw some shade at the NFL for not getting a proper answer to why officials determined the Eagles had recovered. Nixon also shared his thoughts on Monday.
“I got the ball back for sure, and then it should’ve been targeting, helmet to helmet,” Nixon said. “I’ve never been hit that hard.”
While it won’t do much good after the fact, don’t be surprised if the Packers hear back from the NFL about the controversial play as the divisional-round week winds on.
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Keisean Nixon Sounds Off on Future With Packers After Wild-Card Loss