The saga surrounding Jaire Alexander and the Packers has fallen stagnant for now, but that isn’t to say other teams aren’t interested in his services.
With the NFL Draft on the horizon next week, conversations centered around Jaire Alexander could intensify, leading to the Green Bay Packers’ All-Pro cornerback being dealt elsewhere.
For now, the 28-year-old remains on the team’s roster despite both sides seemingly heading for a divorce—it appears to be a matter of when, not if, the Packers trade him. Despite being on the somewhat older side and carrying a hefty price tag, Alexander should have no shortage of suitors. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Packers have indeed received interest from around the league for the former first-round pick’s services, but nothing has materialized as of yet.
General manager Brian Gutekunst rightfully would prefer to ship Alexander off in a trade where the Packers receive something worthwhile in return rather than outright cutting him. The latter is becoming a much more realistic option the longer this entire saga drags out—why would any team in their right mind trade valuable assets for someone that the Packers are more than likely going to end up releasing anyway?
A deal nearly came to fruition at the start of free agency, just as the masses expected. However, according to Tom Silverstein, “The combination of the trade compensation and Alexander’s unwillingness to cut his salary to fit the other team’s salary cap has made it difficult to close a deal.”
The lack of collaboration on Alexander and his representation’s end to agree to a pay cut is going to ultimately expedite his departure from the Packers. Alexander’s salary is going to be north of $17.5 million dollars that will have to be paid if he’s rostered at the start of the regular season and his cap hit is over $24.6 million—numbers that are essentially unjustifiable when you take into account how much time Alexander has missed. When he’s healthy and on the field, he’s one of the league’s premier cornerbacks, but those moments are few and far between. He’s played in just seven games in each of the last two seasons and missed 20 of the Packers’ last 34 contests. Dating back to what appears to have been a career-altering shoulder injury sustained in an October game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2021, Alexander has played in just 34 of the Packers’ last 68 games—or exactly half.
If Alexander is intent on moving on, he can simply inform his camp that he doesn’t want to negotiate with other teams, prompting the Packers to release him once they can’t find a trade partner. At that point, he’ll have full control over his future and where his next destination is going to be.
“We’ll see, we’re working through that,” Gutekunst said at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis back in February. “We’ll work through that as we go along. We have to get him out there more. Not being able to be out there at his best has frustrated him and that has obviously frustrated our football team, too.”
If both parties aren’t able to reach a consensus and Alexander is sporting different colors next year, whether via being released or traded, the Packers will shave off nearly $6 million dollars from their salary cap. They’re not in dire need of the savings—they currently have a little more than $31.6 million dollars in available space. That’s after a brief spending spree in free agency that saw Gutekunst acquire a pair of projected starters in guard Aaron Banks and cornerback Nate Hobbs. The Packers also added wide receiver Mecole Hardman and linebacker Kristian Welch, who returns to Green Bay after being released during final roster cut-downs last summer. In addition to their free-agent pickups and tendering all of their exclusive rights free agents, the Packers re-signed kicker Brandon McManus and linebacker Isaiah McDuffie.
They do need to be cognizant, though, of future contract extensions. Zach Tom, their otherworldly right tackle, for example, is entering the final year of his rookie deal and is going to cost a pretty penny to retain.
Even so, the Packers and Alexander would be able to resolve their differences in an ideal world, but we don’t live in an ideal world. This last season may have left a bitter taste in the mouths of many, so it isn’t difficult to see why a fresh chapter may be necessary for both sides.
Alexander tore his posterior cruciate ligament in the final seconds of an Oct. 27 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. After being shelved for a few weeks, he returned on Nov. 17 against the Chicago Bears, but played just 10 defensive snaps before removing himself from the game due to the immense discomfort. There was a hope that he’d be able to beat the initial recovery timeline and potentially return in time for the Packers’ late-season surge, hence why he was never placed on injured reserve. Despite numerous attempts to play, Alexander was experiencing swelling in his knee.
Before the Packers traveled to Seattle for a primetime date with the Seahawks, Alexander was a full practice participant for two consecutive days before being held out entirely on Friday, Dec. 13. He spent the ensuing week practicing in a full capacity, but didn’t play on Dec. 23 against the New Orleans Saints nor did he play against the Minnesota Vikings the following weekend despite logging a full practice on Wednesday—he was downgraded to limited on Thursday and a non-participant on Friday.
