The Green Bay Packers officially placed star cornerback Jaire Alexander on the injured reserve on Saturday.
The Green Bay Packers are preparing what could be an offensive duel with the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday afternoon. Not only will they be without their top cornerback for the Week 5 matchup, but at least the next couple of games.
On Saturday, the Packers officially announced that they have placed Jaire Alexander on the injured reserve due to a shoulder injury suffered in their Week 4 matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers. With that, Alexander is scheduled to miss at least three games.
In additional moves, the Packers elevated wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown and guard Ben Braden from the practice squad and activated defensive lineman Tyler Lancaster off the COVID-19/reserve list.
Packers CB Jaire Alexander placed on injured reserve
As mentioned earlier, Alexander suffered the injury to his shoulder in the the third quarter after hitting Steelers rookie running back Najee Harris. He was spotted getting carted off on the sidelines and did not return. Head coach Matt LaFleur said, via the Packers’ website, that the hope is that Alexander’s shoulder can heal without surgery.
Green Bay was linked to cornerback Stephon Gilmore from the New England Patriots. Instead, New England traded the former Defensive Player of the Year to the Carolina Panthers in exchange for a 2023 sixth-round pick.
With Alexander sidelined, the Packers will be thin at the cornerback position. While rookie first-round pick Eric Stokes has played well through his first four games of the season, they will have to rely on their depth. The secondary will certainly get tested on Sunday when they face Cincinnati’s wideout corps consisting of Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd.
As for when or if Alexander can return for the season, we will continue to keep you posted on that once updates are provided.