Jaire Alexander's future with the Packers takes interesting turn as free agency kicks off with uncertainty surrounding his status

Alexander has two years left on his deal, without any guarantees left. He is slated to make $17.5 million in 2025, and it's unclear at this point if he would be willing to adjust his contract, maybe adding per-game incentives to compensate for the injury risk.

Back in 2022, he became the highest paid defensive back in NFL history by signing a four-year, $84 million extension with the Packers. A first-round pick in 2018, Jaire has been a Second-Team All-Pro twice, in 2020 and 2022, but has struggled to stay healthy over the past few seasons.

"He's been here a long time, he's been an elite player for a number of years. I think the past few years have been very frustrating for him and certainly for us too, just because you want players like that on the field consistently," Packers GM Brian Gutekunst said. "And when you can't be because of injuries, that's a tough thing on a player. I know he's doing everything he can to be out there, but the last few years haven't been where we wanted it to be only because of injury. But obviously, very, very talented player."

Why they are doing this

The Packers don't have any type of deadline to make a decision on Jaire Alexander before Week 1. There's no roster bonus or trigger to force a trade or release. And with players like DJ Reed and Paulson Adebo out of the free agent market, the Packers can wait.

When asked if Jaire Alexander had shown willingness to stay in Green Bay, Gutekunst indicated how positive his locker room presence is, leaving the door open for a potential return.

"He's never said anything differently. He loves Green Bay, he's always got a lot of energy when he's in the building," Gutekunst added. "I think he's still around. So again, we'll work through that as we go through the offseason and see where that leads."

For now, Jaire is a Packer. The most likely scenario is still that he will play elsewhere in 2025, but it doesn't seem so obvious as it did a day ago.