Tag: jaire alexander

Following his one-week team-imposed suspension, Green Bay Packers All-Pro cornerback Jaire Alexander spoke to the media for the first time on Wednesday.

The Packers made the decision to suspend Alexander following the Panthers game—a move that even “surprised” him. Alexander thought he was only going to get fined. Although not a captain in that contest, Alexander crashed the party and made his way out to midfield for the coin toss.

While this pre-game decision by Alexander garnered all the attention, Matt LaFleur would say that it’s never just one thing that leads to a result like a suspension.

Unlike in many of his previous interviews, some of which have included sunglasses and a championship wrestling belt, Alexander was more serious this time.

“I think it was definitely something to learn from,” said Alexander. “There was definitely things I could have improved upon during that week to help with the communication. Moving forward that won’t happen again.”

Along with Alexander learning something from this situation, the opportunity to learn is there for LaFleur as well—something he has acknowledged. While ultimately it was Alexander’s actions in Carolina that led to the suspension, there was a disconnect along the way between the two that led to this outcome.

LaFleur and Alexander spoke last week once the decision to suspend him was made and again this past Monday. As Alexander put it, they got down to the “nitty gritty,” adding that it was good for both sides to hear the others’ perspective. Moving forward, communication is going to be a key priority to ensure everyone stays on the same page.

“Just communicating,” said Alexander. “I think communication is big. It’s easy to talk to my guys and talking to anybody else would be a little bit of a challenge. So I’ve got to be better at that.”

Without Alexander this past Sunday in Minnesota, the Packers’ secondary faced the difficult task of having to slow Justin Jefferson and the rest of the Minnesota receivers. On paper, it was a matchup that didn’t favor Green Bay whatsoever, but one that the Packers were able to win.

Jefferson was held to just 59 receiving yards the entire game on 10 targets. Jordan Addison had only 28 yards, while KJ Osborn didn’t even log a reception. The Green Bay pass rush, which pressured the Vikings’ quarterbacks on 50 percent of their dropbacks played a key role, but credit to Corey Ballentine and Carrington Valentine for their performances. Combined, the two allowed just six receptions on 15 targets for 65 yards with two forced incompletions by Ballentine and an interception.

Alexander stayed in contact with the cornerback room throughout the week and sent them some congratulatory texts post game for their performances.

“Initially I was very upset,” said Alexander about not being able to be on the field. “But when my guys went out there and did what they did, I couldn’t be too mad. I was pretty happy. I sic my young boys on them and I didn’t have to move a muscle.”

Alexander was back at practice on Wednesday, still on the injury report dealing with the same shoulder injury he suffered in Week 9 against Los Angeles, but this time, he was a full participant.

When asked, LaFleur didn’t get into specifics around Alexander’s availability for Sunday’s game or what his role would be. However, Alexander mentioned that his shoulder “should be good.”

From the outside looking in, we aren’t going to recognize any changes with Alexander, LaFleur, or anyone else have made—other than Alexander’s interviews being a “little more serious,” as he put it. The next step is that the actions from both parties moving forward backup what we’ve heard said in these interviews, and that may take some time, but they appear to be on the right path.

“It doesn’t affect my relationship with anybody,” said Alexander of the suspension. “If anything, it improved it.”

Heading into a win-and-in playoff-like scenario in Week 18 against a surging Bears team, Alexander is happy to be back on the practice field and “very grateful” to be in Green Bay.

“Just keeping doing what I’m doing,” said Alexander of what the team expects from him, “and no setbacks.”

Green Bay Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander was re-instated to the roster on Monday and practiced on Wednesday, and coach Matt LaFleur believes the two-time All-Pro is ready to help his team during Sunday’s finale against the Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field.

LaFleur wouldn’t commit to Alexander — who was suspended for last week’s win over the Minnesota Vikings for conduct detrimental to the team — immediately taking back his starting spot at cornerback against the Bears, nor would he say what Alexander needs to show or do to be a starter.

“I’m not going to get into too many of the specifics, you guys will find out later in the week, but I will say, it was great to have him back. We had a great conversation on Monday. He’s ready to go,” LaFleur said Wednesday.

Without Alexander against the Vikings, the Packers started Carrington Valentine and Corey Ballentine at cornerback and mostly shut down Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and K.J. Osborn during Sunday night’s 33-10 win at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Up next is a showdown with Justin Fields and D.J. Moore with a playoff spot on the line. A win, and the Packers are in as the No. 6 or No. 7 seed in the NFC. Moore will come into the contest with 92 catches, 1,300 yards and eight touchdowns through 16 games.

With Alexander available in Week 1, the Packers limited Moore to just two catches for 25 yards. His two targets are still a season low.

The Green Bay Packers suspended cornerback Jaire Alexander one game for conduct deemed detrimental to the team.

Alexander was placed on the reserve/suspended list on Wednesday and will miss Sunday night’s game against the Minnesota Vikings. He will be eligible to return for Week 18 vs. the Chicago Bears. The one-game suspension is in response to Alexander’s actions before kickoff of the Packers’ 33-30 win over the Carolina Panthers last Sunday.

“The decision to suspend a player is never easy and not one we take lightly.  Unfortunately, Jaire’s actions prior to the game in Carolina led us to take this step,” said general manager Brian Gutekunst. “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.”

Alexander invited himself to midfield for the coin toss, called tails for the coin toss and then made a mistake after the Packers won the toss, stating he wanted the Packers defense on the field instead of deferring to the second half. The referee corrected the mistake and allowed the Packers to defer, but the procedural mistake — from a player not picked to be a game captain — could have cost the team a possession.

Coach Matt LaFleur called it a “big mistake.”

The Packers weekly captains vs. the Panthers were Aaron Jones, Quay Walker and Eric Wilson. A native of Charlotte, Alexander went out for the coin toss on his own.

Alexander, a two-time All-Pro, returned Sunday after missing six games with a shoulder injury. He will miss a matchup against Vikings All-Pro receiver Justin Jefferson on Sunday night.

The suspension hurts the Packers, who need to win out over the final two games to have a chance at making the NFC playoff field.

The Green Bay Packers listed cornerback Jaire Alexander as questionable to play for the sixth consecutive week, but coach Matt LaFleur expressed some optimism that his All-Pro cover man will return to his home state of North Carolina and play Sunday against the Carolina Panthers.

“You know, we’re hopeful, we’ll put it at that,” LaFleur said Friday.

Alexander injured his shoulder while diving to break up a pass on Nov. 5 against the Los Angeles Rams. He’s practiced in a limited capacity for roughly a month but has still missed six straight games.

The Packers listed Alexander — a Charlotte, North Carolina native — as limited in practice all three days this week.

LaFleur has previously said tackling is part of the issue preventing Alexander from returning to the field.

The Packers — who need to win out to have a shot at the postseason — could use Alexander’s return to the field. Cornerbacks Carrington Valentine, Eric Stokes and Keisean Nixon all struggled in coverage during the team’s 34-20 loss to Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week. Without a top corner, defensive coordinator Joe Barry relied upon heavy zone coverage to contain Mike Evans and ended up getting sliced up by Chris Godwin and others.

The Panthers have struggled throwing the football this season. The team’s top wideouts are veteran Adam Thielen, rookie Jonathan Mingo and deep threat D.J. Chark.

Alexander’s status for Sunday won’t be known until 90 minutes before kickoff — or roughly 10:30 a.m. CT — when inactives are announced.

Alexander has missed nine of 14 games in 2023. He previously dealt with a back injury this season.

Alexander attended Rocky River High School in Charlotte, the home of the Panthers.

Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur said Monday that the team “miscalculated” the severity of Jaire Alexander’s shoulder injury, providing an explanation for why Alexander — who suffered the injury on Nov. 5 — wasn’t put on injured reserve but has missed six consecutive games.

Alexander hurt his shoulder while diving to the ground and attempting to break up a pass during the Packers’ 20-3 win over the Los Angeles Rams. He has practiced in a limited capacity over the last month but hasn’t played in a game since Nov. 5.

LaFleur recently said that tackling was a part of the issue keeping Alexander off the field. Alexander said an injury to the shoulder can be debilitating in terms of playing the cornerback position and he considered himself “week to week.”

“Especially when you’re talking about elite corners, that’s a tough (injury) to battle,” Alexander said on Dec. 8. “I’m the type of person who always wants to put my best foot forward. I feel like if I can’t put my best foot forward, it’s tough to be out there.”

The miscalculation from the Packers was in terms of the recovery timeline. The team could have placed Alexander on injured reserve early on, forcing him to miss a minimum of four games while freeing up a roster spot.

The early prognosis must have estimated Alexander’s return within the four-week timeframe. He has practiced and been listed as questionable during five of the last six weeks (although he downgraded to out before the Giants game), so the team has left the door open to Alexander playing through the injury.

Alexander said he’s played through injuries in the past but this one to his shoulder is different.

“I’ve done that a few times this year, but with what I’ve got going on right now, it’s a little more tough,” Alexander said.