Packers’ Matt Le Fleur Gives Less-Than-Ideal Update On Jaire Alexander

The Jaire Alexander will-they-won’t-they trade saga with the Green Bay Packers got a small boost received a positive update – at least for those in favor of Alexander remaining with the team – noting that the parties are in talks concerning a potential resolution and a return for the 2 x All-Pro in 2025.

However, during media availability on Friday, LeFleur stated that Jaire Alexander will not be with the team for voluntary in-person workouts, finishing with a clear-cut nine-word message.

Packers Trying To “Work Through” Contract With Jaire Alexander

Unlike some veterans who begin to lose a step as they begin to get older, particularly at speed-first positions like corner, Alexander’s issues have not been performance related.

When healthy, Alexander is still very capable of being a #1 corner in the league. Although he is perhaps not quite at the peak of his powers, there is no doubt there is a desire for the former Louisville cover corner to be on the team.

But there is a feeling that Alexander’s hefty price tag and cap hit; $24 million in 2025 and $27 million in 2026; is difficult to justify given his substantial injury history over the past half decade.

Since the start of the 2021 season nearly four years ago, the 2 x Pro Bowler has played in 34 out of 68 possible games. He has only managed one season in that time frame, 2022 – after which he received both Pro Bowl and second-team All-Pro honors – in which he has played over half the season’s games, being limited to just seven in both 2023 and 2024.

It is understandable, thus, that Green Bay are unwilling to shell out $51 million in cap hit over the next two years for a player that has supremely struggled to stay healthy, even if he has been effective whilst fit.

What Could A Resolution Look Like Between The Two Sides?

At this point in time, the Packers would incur a $17 million dead cap hit if they cut Alexander, $7 million less than the $24 million it would cost to keep him around for this season.

The “working through” LeFleur is describing likely reflects Green Bay attempting to restructure the deal of the 28-year old to make it both more affordable for the Packers to keep him this year, whilst not taking vast amounts of money out of Alexander’s pocket.

But the cap hit and dead money don’t actually reflect the cash going into Alexander’s pockets, as the grand majority of $17.5 million that he is owed in 2025 is from a non-guaranteed base salary of $16.15 million.

So there is very much an incentive for him to take a restructured contract that results in a lower cap hit for the team, and with him managing to keep a good chunk of his $17.5 million that he is owed.

It is unlikely that any final contract amendment would hold any guarantees much past 2026 – at least few meaningful ones, anyway. But with a strong 2025 season with a clean bill of health, it is not impossible for Packers to expect to see Jaire Alexander back with the team for multiple years to come.