Looking Back at Some Favorite Jaire Alexander Moments
Big plays, big laughs.
By Kevin Gibson
Well, Jaire Alexander is now a Baltimore Raven. Since his release from the Green Bay Packers, he has reunited with his best pal Lamar Jackson. It seems like the logical next step for the player and the franchise.
Packers fans are going to miss his big plays and his colorful personality. Packers fans, however, are not going to miss wondering from week to week if he was even going to suit up. The NFL can be a bear sometimes when it comes to players’ bodies, so let’s not dwell on that.
Rather than question the front office’s decision to let him walk, rather than mourn the loss of the best cornerback on the Packers’ roster, and rather than tearfully declare 2025 a lost season without him, let’s take a look back at some favorite Ja Money moments.
Screen Pass? Not on Ja’s Watch
The first moment during Alexander’s rookie season in which I literally got goose bumps was when the Vikings ran a wide receiver screen pass to the left side and the Packers corner said, “Um, no.” He blew up would-be blocker Adam Thielen, knocked him into Stefon Diggs almost simultaneously with the catch, then chased Diggs down for about a 10-yard loss. Now, THAT’S football. You can watch the play here on Facebook.
Ja Griddy
One of Alexander’s best games as a Packer arguably is when he strapped down Justin Jefferson for a full game, bullying him, jawing at him and holding him to a single reception on the day. The coup de gras came when he broke up a pass and mocked Jefferson by doing the wide receiver’s signature griddy celebration right in front of him. Packers fans are going to miss that WR-CB rivalry.
Mine
In a 2019 game against the Denver Broncos, tight end Noah Fant came down with a reception with his team trailing the Packers, 17-10. What initially was a first down for the Broncos then became a new Packers’ possession. Alexander zeroed in on Fant, delivered a hit, wrapped up … and, channeling vintage Clay Matthews, simply snatched the ball out of the hands of a guy who outweighed him by 50 pounds. Boom: Packers’ ball.
Reservation for Six
This one is still fresh in the minds of Packers fans. In Week 3 last season, Will Levis of the Tennessee Titans threw an ill-advised – and slightly telegraphed – sideline pass in Alexander’s direction. It almost looked like slow motion as the cornerback strode in front of Calvin Ridley and high-stepped into the end zone. A true thing of beauty.
Two From Tom
Yeah, we’d rather forget the outcome of this game (the name Scotty Miller still kicks up PTSD for many of us), but it also was a gorgeous sight watching Alexander pick off Tom Brady twice in the playoffs following the 2020 season, a season in which it sure looked like MVP Aaron Rodgers was going to lead the Packers to the Super Bowl. Alexander sure did his part in that game; unfortunately, it ended up being the final game of the season as a 31-26 loss.
Um, That’s No ‘Fan’
This one isn’t a play on the field but rather a moment of playfulness off it that at the time exemplified Alexander’s goofy personality. That poor local reporter had no idea what had just happened, and it’s still a classic Packers moment. “Huuuh!”
Cutting Corners
It was the first game of that aforementioned 2020 season, against the hated Minnesota Vikings, that Jaire enjoyed another fine on-field moment. The Packers had come up a yard short on a drive, turning the ball over on downs early in the second quarter. Quarterback Cousins dropped back to pass on a play-action look, and Alexander came on a corner blitz, sneaking around the purple-clad left tackle to take Cousins down for a safety. Final score: Packers 43, Vikings 34.
‘Oh snap, He fast!’
In a Christmas Day game in 2022, Alexander got a pick thanks to an overthrow of Tyreek Hill by Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovaiola. That interception helped the Packers cruise to a 30-17 victory, but it was the post-game interview that really completed the play in the most Jaire way. It’s worth watching the entire discussion with sideline reporter Pam Oliver – Alexander mostly plays it straight at first, using a “checkers/chess” analogy in a slightly cheeky way. Then Oliver asks him about the interception, and the look on Alexander’s face at that moment let the world know he was about to do Ja things. Always worth a re-watch.
And if you suddenly find yourself in the mood to watch a boatload of Ja highlights, we’ve got you covered right here.
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Kevin Gibson is a professional writer and author based in Louisville, Ky. He's also a former sports writer who covered high school, college and professional sports, a Packers shareholder and a fan since 1975. Even John Hadl couldn't break him. Follow him on Twitter: @kgramone
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Comments (22)
Cheezehead72
June 27, 2025 at 06:35 am
So I have been thinking on why JA took such an inexpensive contract to play for the Ravens. Yes I know a lot has been said about Lamar being a good friend and he wanted to join him. Yes I believe that is the biggest reason other than them being a contender. I also wonder if playing against Rodgers at least two times this year might have been a factor.
GregC
June 27, 2025 at 07:12 am
Maybe nobody else gave him a better offer--or maybe only slightly better. All we know is what he said.
Guam
June 27, 2025 at 07:41 am
I found it a little shocking that was the best offer he could get. Very much a prove it offer and nowhere near elite CB money. I guess the rest of the league saw the same things the Packers saw.
dobber
June 27, 2025 at 08:25 am
I don't think we know any more about the Packers' offer than that they weren't willing to guarantee anything...so essentially in a reworked deal, they could cut him at the end of camp and he gets nothing and has to go find a deal when there's likely to be even less available and no time to learn a defense and make himself look good ahead of free agency. I suspect the cash value the Packers were offering was probably more than the $4M in cash and signing bonus the Ravens offered.
We also don't know how many teams JA was talking to, how many offers he had, and how big they were. I'm guessing that beyond the Packers, he left some money on the table to go to Balt. He'll be playing with a really good team, with a reputation for playing good defense--and that will prop him up for one more big contract if he can stay on the field.
JA has some pretty juicy incentives based on availability: he earns an additional $500k at 35% of snaps played, add an additional $500k at 40%, and so on until 50% when he can accumulate a total of $2M in play time incentives. Those are judged "unlikely to be earned" and don't count against this year's cap for Baltimore, but--if he's still got it--JA doesn't even need to be terribly motivated to hit 50%.
GregC
June 27, 2025 at 09:28 am
How do we know that the Packers weren't willing to guarantee anything? Just because Jaire's dad said it? Or do you have another source? Maybe Jaire's dad was exaggerating when he said that. He is not an unbiased observer. I thought there were vet minimums that had to be guaranteed, but maybe I'm wrong.
It's possible that he left some money on the table to go to the Ravens, but probably not much, if any. It seems to me that players almost always sign with the highest bidder. If another team offered substantially more than the Ravens, wouldn't he perceive the Ravens as low-balling him just because he wanted to play for them?
Guam
June 27, 2025 at 10:38 am
I have yet to ever see a player leave significant money on the table to play for a "preferred" team. These players have short careers and need to earn their money while they can and their agents know this well.
Alexander's $4-6 million contract with the Ravens is between a third and a fifth of what his 2025 contract with the Packers was for. If the Packers or another team had offered significantly more than the Ravens, do you really believe Alexander would still have preferred the Ravens?
I think Alexander's dad was putting the best spin he could on a prove it deal which had to be a little embarrassing for Alexander.
egbertsouse
June 27, 2025 at 06:47 am
I’m hoping that this is the last Jaire Alexander story. I’m so over him and his big mouth father, LaVar Ball Alexander.
pantz_bURp
June 27, 2025 at 07:00 am
With his Dreamy eyes...I hope he never looks back.
PB
T7Steve
June 27, 2025 at 07:15 am
I'm glad the Packers are done struggling with him. It's always good to have a shutdown corner. It's not so good to have one that used to be.
Wish him well in his new endeavor. I'm sure he'll play lights out in a prove it year if he wants to and stays healthy. The last couple seasons it seems he avoided the games where he had to go up against the best passers and pass catchers.
Guam
June 27, 2025 at 07:38 am
Last year I often wondered about Alexander practicing during the week and then not playing in the game on Sunday. With most players, if they can practice during the week, then they play on Sunday. I suspect that was part of the Packer frustration with Alexander.
pantz_bURp
June 27, 2025 at 07:55 am
Yeah Dreamy was a shut down corner alright. Problem is, he shut himself down on Game Days.
the Nitty Griddy,
Pantz at a Glanze
*Looking back, that sword gesture celebration of his...well, he used that same exact sword to cut his availability in half.
**With all this being said, I would like to give him a hug and wish him well. My hopes is that the hug becomes so long in duration that it makes us both feel a lil' uncomfortable. Eye, eye captain...
Leatherhead
June 27, 2025 at 07:58 am
Last year, he was available against teams without a top WR, but when it came time to play against Amon Ra, or Jefferson, or Nacua......he was injured. It's pretty suspicious looking to me.
I agree with Egbertsouse; I hope this is the last Jaire Alexander story here.
T7Steve
June 27, 2025 at 08:32 am
There will be all kinds of stories to use up the dead zone. They have to think hard to come up with something. It will even be worse when they bring up the Steelers new QB again.
dobber
June 27, 2025 at 08:38 am
"Last year, he was available against teams without a top WR, but when it came time to play against Amon Ra, or Jefferson, or Nacua......he was injured. "
You make a good point in that JA played mostly in games against sub-.500 teams: he played against Houston (W) and Philly(L). Those were the only playoff teams he saw...the Packers were 6-1 in those games. The Packers played five games against playoff teams when JA was unavailable...they were 5-5 overall in games w/o JA and 1-4 against those playoff teams with the losses by 2, 10, 3, and 2 points.
Leatherhead
June 27, 2025 at 10:38 am
I'm a little confused. It seems like the only win we got against a playoff team, with Alexander on the field, was against Houston.
In two point losses to Minnesota, twice, where he might have been useful against Jefferson, he was injured. In the 3 point loss to Detroit, where he might have been helpful, he was absent.
Draw your own conclusions. It smells bad to me.
LeotisHarris
June 27, 2025 at 08:31 am
That was fun to look at the bright side of Ja, but not even the euphoric recall of the griddy can erase all the drama this dude brought with him.
Nice story, Kevin, It's a pleasure to read your work.
GregC
June 27, 2025 at 08:54 am
I wasn't ready for this article. Maybe in 5-10 years. Honestly, none of these episodes are as memorable as the coin toss caper.
LeotisHarris
June 27, 2025 at 10:26 am
Definitely a low point.
NFLfan
June 27, 2025 at 09:49 am
Alexander reminds me of Ja Morant-a guy blessed with talent but the emotional maturity of a 3 year-old.
These kinds of guys set up fans for heart break and longing because of their potential-
MitchAnthony
June 27, 2025 at 01:06 pm
Oh the oft repeated word - shutdown.
Please, please, pretty please, shut down these stories already. Enough already.
He was a good player here for a while. He's gone. All the best to him in life, especially beyond the game.
LLCHESTY
June 27, 2025 at 01:27 pm
The shutdown game against Jefferson was definitely the high point of his career here, followed by the Int against Dallas to get that snowball rolling downhill for them.
Bearmeat
June 27, 2025 at 05:04 pm
I’ll be honest. I never loved his attitude. I don’t like players making themselves the center of attention. He is (was?) always a weird dude. I wanted him to stay on a reworked contract, but I was so over him getting big money. I am also glad he didn’t join another NFCN team.