Jaire Alexander's Safety

[Deleted member 6794]

That is my only concern in the case of Alexander. He made a great play, but I hope that it is not a lucky stroke in a bad line of decision making. I like Alexander and his play, but overall, one of Pettine's main goals in 2020 is to make sure that guys are in position to make plays.

Alexander gets beaten for huge gains a bit too much to my liking for a shutdown cornerback but overall his decision making doesn't seem to be an issue.

 

[El Guapo]

Yes, as is prone to happen with young players. I agree that he does get beaten but am hopeful that it happens less in his third year. This is about the time that good players start putting it all together. The brains catch up to the brawn.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Yes, as is prone to happen with young players. I agree that he does get beaten but am hopeful that it happens less in his third year. This is about the time that good players start putting it all together. The brains catch up to the brawn.

I'm confident that Alexander will reduce the numbers of big plays given up moving forward as well. He definitely needs to to be considered a shutdown corner.

With that being said I like him being aggressive like on the play that resulted in the safety.

 

[thequick12]

That's what great players do, they see things and make plays outside the scheme...how many times did charles woodson do stuff just like that

And to still make the play when you guess wrong that's a good sign that Alexander is on his way

 

[ARPackFan]

The defense gave up way too many plays vs. the Vikings but I have hard time understanding someone complaining about them actually making a great play.

Not complaining about the result of the play but how he got their. Some of the best plays in NFL history have been because of errors.

Missing a read is still a mistake and the Packers defense has been a big question mark for at least the last 8 years. Giving up 34 points in the 19 minutes the Vikings had possession does not exactly inspire confidence. My point is I hope that in the film room he is made to understand the error he made and how to prevent it in the future so he is not exploited by an opposing team's OC.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Not complaining about the result of the play but how he got their. Some of the best plays in NFL history have been because of errors.

Missing a read is still a mistake and the Packers defense has been a big question mark for at least the last 8 years. Giving up 34 points in the 19 minutes the Vikings had possession does not exactly inspire confidence. My point is I hope that in the film room he is made to understand the error he made and how to prevent it in the future so he is not exploited by an opposing team's OC.

I don't have any issue with Alexander taking a gamble to make a play.

It's true that even great players will give up huge gains occasionally while doing so but as long as the ratio of that happening is reasonably low Pettine shouldn't try to limit that part of his game.

 

[Sunshinepacker]

I don't have any issue with Alexander taking a gamble to make a play.

It's true that even great players will give up huge gains occasionally while doing so but as long as the ratio of that happening is reasonably low Pettine shouldn't try to limit that part of his game.

Great corners giving up a huge game is generally the equivalent of what Jaire gave up to Thielen in week 1. Jaire gave up over 200 yards in coverage against Cooper last season; Jaire has the potential to be great but he's not there yet.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Great corners giving up a huge game is generally the equivalent of what Jaire gave up to Thielen in week 1. Jaire gave up over 200 yards in coverage against Cooper last season; Jaire has the potential to be great but he's not there yet.

It's true that Alexander still gives up too many big plays to be considered an elite cornerback. I'm confident he will reduce that number moving forward though.

 

[El Guapo]

I'm not confident but I am hopeful.

 

[Heyjoe4]

True, but this is Kirk Cousins you're talking about.
"Cousins didn't check his blind side, or even notice Alexander creeping up."

Good point. I gotta believe Rodgers or any truly elite QB would have seen this and thrown immediately to Thielen. Cousins is like Minnesota's answer to Jay Cutler.

 

[Heyjoe4]

It sounds like we got VERY lucky on Alexander's safety. From the reports that I read and having watched his post-game interview, this is what I know:

1) Alexander saw Thielen motion and decided on his own, based on Thielen, to run-blitz
2) When the ball was snapped, he realized that it was actually a pass play but couldn't back out of his decision.
3) He got there quick and got a safety
4) After the play, Pettine called him "sneaky" and gave him a fist pump

My thoughts:
- Had Thielen recognized that he was free, he should have aborted his route and turned for a hot throw from Cousins
- Cousins didn't check his blind side, or even notice Alexander creeping up before the play. He was un-prepared to make a hot throw

We would have gotten burned hard by a wide open Thielen, so luckily this all work out for the Packers. It is always interesting to see what freedoms the players do and don't have to improvise. Hopefully Alexander is right more often than wrong!

Hi El Guapo, thanks for this breakdown. One question though, why would Alexander blitz on what he thought was a run play? To catch the RB behind the line?

 

[Heyjoe4]

It's true that Alexander still gives up too many big plays to be considered an elite cornerback. I'm confident he will reduce that number moving forward though.

Agreed. He's not quite there yet as far as an elite corner (and to me that means he's among the top five at his position). He is gifted athletically and he's a smart guy. I gotta believe he'll get there either this year or next year. Regardless, after so many failures drafting corners, it's nice to have Alexander and King in the secondary.

 

[PackerDNA]

For me, Alexander is a microcosm of the defense. He can be either very good or very bad. It's year three, so all the lights should come on. What's encouraging for me is that his percentage of good plays are going up while his percentage of bad plays are going down. Still gets burned too much to be considered elite though.

 

[Heyjoe4]

For me, Alexander is a microcosm of the defense. He can be either very good or very bad. It's year three, so all the lights should come on. What's encouraging for me is that his percentage of good plays are going up while his percentage of bad plays are going down. Still gets burned too much to be considered elite though.

Yeah I think that's fair. Hopefully he continues to improve. And despite weaknesses on the DL and the ILB group, the D can come together at times, just not all the time. Clearly the DL and ILBs need to be addressed before next season. And as good as the offense has been, I just don't think a team gets to the SB, much less wins it, without at least a top 10 D, ideally top 5.

 

[Poppa San]

Hi El Guapo, thanks for this breakdown. One question though, why would Alexander blitz on what he thought was a run play? To catch the RB behind the line?

Correct.
My concern is he sniffed out a run based on film FROM LAST SEASON. They didn't run but he was able to get home with a sack. He never considered they would run something different out of that formation and motion. That there is why the call was wrong but the mission a success.

 

[gopkrs]

Good point. I gotta believe Rodgers or any truly elite QB would have seen this and thrown immediately to Thielen. Cousins is like Minnesota's answer to Jay Cutler.

I saw Jaire hiding to the side of the big linemen and then let go and rushed fast. It's true Cousins was not looking over there but Jaire was hidden by the big dudes anyway. And Thielen's pattern was up the middle which was very congested. I don't think Cousins had time to do anything and Alexander made a great play. If there was a run coming around the end; he would have been there for the tackle. Ended up being a straight shot at the QB.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Regardless, after so many failures drafting corners, it's nice to have Alexander and King in the secondary.

The Packers might have to replace King after this season though.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Correct.
My concern is he sniffed out a run based on film FROM LAST SEASON. They didn't run but he was able to get home with a sack. He never considered they would run something different out of that formation and motion. That there is why the call was wrong but the mission a success.

Thanks El Guapo, much appreciated!

 

[Heyjoe4]

I saw Jaire hiding to the side of the big linemen and then let go and rushed fast. It's true Cousins was not looking over there but Jaire was hidden by the big dudes anyway. And Thielen's pattern was up the middle which was very congested. I don't think Cousins had time to do anything and Alexander made a great play. If there was a run coming around the end; he would have been there for the tackle. Ended up being a straight shot at the QB.

Interesting gopkrs. Thanks for the additional insight on that play.