The Packers made the playoffs but couldn’t move past the Wild Card round. They were good but not good enough to earn a title. So when the offseason began, GM Brian Gutekunst had a clear task: build a stronger team around Jordan Love. To make the team around Love, several signings, re-signings, and cuts happened. And in the middle of all that, a big-name defender landed on the trade block.
Drafted by Green Bay as their first pick in 2018, the word was that Jaire Alexander might not play another season wearing Packers gear. The reason is his unavailability and injuries. Because of this, the CB missed 34 of the last 68 games over the past four seasons. The team made it official that they were looking for a trade for Alexander. But now, hardly ten days are left for the draft, and Alexander is still here. As per several reports, Green Bay was close to trading the 28-year-old, but two things got in the way.
One was that Green Bay wanted more in return than teams were willing to offer.
The second was that Jaire did not want to take a pay cut, which made it harder to move his big contract.
And now, the word on the street is that they’ve taken a soft U-turn with the trade talks because they’re not willing to walk away without getting something good in return for the investment they made in the CB.
NFL RUMORS: The #Packers have taken calls on Jaire Alexander pic.twitter.com/gQuRSb3mUb
— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) April 15, 2025
When asked about the cornerback’s trade at the owner’s meeting in late March, GM Gutekunst said, “We invested a lot in Jaire and want to make sure, if he’s not gonna be on our football team helping us win games, that we get something back for that investment. So we’ll see where it goes.” So far, some teams have shown interest in signing Alexander, but nothing is close to being finalized, as reported by Tom Silverstein from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
There are still two years left on Alexander’s $84M deal. The CB is due $17.5M this year, which is one of the reasons teams are hesitant to pick him up. The interested franchises might be waiting on the Packers to release the CB instead of trading for him because that would mean they could sign him to a cheaper deal without having to pay too much to Green Bay. So, this entire situation with Jaire is kind of uncertain for now.
So, while Alexander’s future remains up in the air, Green Bay‘s defensive plans could still be shifting. Recently, reports have surfaced about the team adding a player to their LB corps.
Packers eyeing Giants’ Isaiah Simmons
Is it time for Isaiah Simmons to switch to his third team? Originally drafted by the Cardinals in 2020, Simmons has been gracing the gridiron with the Giants for the last two seasons. Now, the Clemson alum is looking for career redemption with the Packers. This season, Simmons’ $2M deal came to an end, and he hit free agency. On Monday, as reported by Ian Rapoport, Green Bay hosted the LB at their facility.
During his time with the Cardinals, the 26-year-old played multiple positions with the team. But that did not fit quite well with the team’s defensive plans. Or maybe the team could not figure out at which position his strengths would be best put to use. Simmons recorded over a hundred tackles during his time in Arizona.
Then, with the Giants again, the LB took on different roles. He did not miss a single game during his two years with the Giants. But his number of starts dropped. One could say that during his stint with New York, he didn’t quite get the chance to show his skill like he did in Arizona. In his five-year NFL career, a mix of coaching styles and team systems didn’t allow the LB to play up to his full potential. But this might change now if the Packers give him a shot.
So, could Green Bay finally be the team to unlock the version of Isaiah Simmons the league was once so hyped about?
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