The Green Bay Packers and longtime star cornerback Jaire Alexander were involved in the NFL rumor mill all offseason long.
At the beginning of the offseason, it looked like the Packers would either trade or release him. As the 2025 NFL Draft came and went, Green Bay looked much more likely to keep him. However, the two sides had to work out a new contract in order for that to happen.
Despite the optimism that Alexander might remain with the Packers, the two sides could not come together on a restructured contract. That led to Green Bay releasing him.
Following the news of Alexander’s release, it was reported that the longtime star cornerback was not willing to take a pay cut. That report may not have been true.
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In response to the report, Alexander’s father, Landis Alexander, fired back with a shot at the report and the team. He made it clear that his son was willing to discuss a pay cut, but was not willing to play nearly for free.
“This is not true. Nobody ever said that he wouldn’t take a pay cut,” he said. “He wasn’t willing to play for damn near free is a better quote.”
Throughout his seven-year stint with the Packers, Alexander was one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL. Unfortunately, over the last two years, he has been unable to stay healthy.
Each of the last two seasons have seen Alexander only able to play in seven games apiece. During the 2024 season, those seven games were enough to show that when the 28-year-old cornerback is healthy he’s still more than capable of playing at a star level.
He racked up 16 total tackles to go along with a fumble recovery, two interceptions, a defensive touchdown, and seven defended passes in 2024. Those numbers will help him land a new deal with a new team in the very near future.
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Green Bay will now need to figure out how to replace him. Alexander has been a key part of the team’s defense for years. Without him on the field, the Packers’ defense has been nowhere close to as good as it was capable of being.
During the offseason, the team did sign former Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Nate Hobbs. That was a solid addition, but he won’t be able to replace Alexander by himself.
It will be interesting to see what the future holds for Alexander. Regardless of what happened between him and Green Bay, he’s a free agent now who will have a chance to choose where he wants to play the next chapter of his NFL career.
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