The Packers are one of 24 teams reporting for mandatory minicamp today.
48 hours ago, Jaire Alexander was preparing to report for the Packers’ mandatory minicamp. Today, the Packers will be at work in Green Bay — and part of their on-field responsibilities will be figuring out how to replace Alexander, their now-former cornerback.
Life moves fast in the NFL, to say the least.
Of course, the plan to move on from Alexander has been in place for a while. The Packers had the number they wanted to pay Alexander and a player in place to replace him, having signed Nate Hobbs in free agency in March. It was only ever a question of whether or not Alexander would bite on the Packers’ offer of a re-worked deal, and when he didn’t, the next phase of the plan triggered.
To that end, the question of how to replace Alexander really isn’t that much of a question at all. What we’re really left wondering about is whether or not this is a good plan. Should the Packers have been more aggressive in free agency or in the draft? Should they have added more than Hobbs, day three draft pick Micah Robinson, and some undrafted free agents to their cornerback room?
We can’t know for a while, but consider this: the bigger improvement in the Packers’ secondary might not have anything to do with Alexander, but how they’re spending the snaps of fellow departed cornerback Eric Stokes.
Stokes, another former first-round cornerback, played 588 uninspiring snaps for the Packers last year, snaps that will this year be allocated to players like Hobbs and third-year man Carrington Valentine. Yes, it’s a big loss to not have Alexander, even if it’s only for 10 games, but it’s probably an even bigger gain to be able to give a significant chunk of defensive snaps to someone other than Stokes.
Packers release Jaire Alexander: How Green Bay will replace All-Pro cornerback, why secondary should be fine | CBS Sports
Here’s a national look at Jaire Alexander’s departure. Lots of confidence here.
24 NFL teams open mandatory minicamp on Tuesday | NFL.com
It’s mandatory minicamp day for three-quarters of the NFL.
Zach Tom locked in for critical Year 4 | Packers.com
I’d forgotten about the rash of bench press-related pec injuries in Green Bay last year, which affected Tucker Kraft and even Matt LaFleur in addition to Zach Tom.
Contract Extension Shows Why Packers Drafted Matthew Golden, Savion Williams | Sports Illustrated
It’s expensive to pay wide receivers and much cheaper to draft them.
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