The Green Bay Packers had a busy offseason when it came to their defense, and while the trade to acquire star pass rusher Micah Parsons drew the most headlines, the decision to release cornerback Jaire Alexander was their most controversial decision of the offseason.
The relationship between Alexander and the Packers deteriorated over the years as the 2018 first-round pick couldn’t stay healthy. It caused a dragged-out contract dispute that saw Alexander decline a pay cut, get released, and take a lower salary to sign with the Baltimore Ravens.
Alexander's Ravens stint got off to a rough start by getting hurt in the season opener against the Buffalo Bills, and his time in Baltimore may have hit a new low during a 44-10 loss to the Houston Texans, having a sore loser moment after a touchdown by rookie wideout Jaylin Noel.
Ex-Packer Jaire Alexander’s Frustrations Boil Over in Ugly Ravens Return
Alexander made his return after missing the past three games while managing a previous knee injury suffered with the Packers last season. While Alexander wasn’t solely to blame for the rancid performance, allowing one catch for 14 yards on his lone target, his rock bottom moment came when quarterback C.J. Stroud threw his fourth touchdown pass of the game to Texans receiver Jaylin Noel.
Noel celebrated by hitting Ravens legend Ray Lewis’s squirrel dance (h/t @MySportsUpdate) after the score and had plans on keeping the ball after his first career touchdown. Alexander sprinted over to confront the rookie after his dance and attempted to rip the ball away before he headed to the sideline.
The hot-headed moment is something that Packers fans dealt with while Alexander was a Pro Bowler in Green Bay; however, the antics could already be wearing thin on his new team. The 28-year-old wasn’t effective in his Baltimore debut, allowing catches on all three targets for 83 yards in the loss to the Bills, and his injury didn’t do him any favors, returning to a team that was in a 1-3 hole entering Sunday.
With Jackson out due to a hamstring injury, the Ravens didn’t have the firepower to keep up, leaving Alexander part of a defense that has gone AWOL over the first month.
Packers fans could laugh at Alexander’s misfortune and be glad they used some of the cap savings to trade for Parsons and give him a massive contract. But it’s also a sign that Alexander’s career could be reaching a breaking point that boiled over in a moment of frustration on Sunday.