GREEN BAY, Wis. — Inexperienced Bay Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander thinks as extremely of Justin Jefferson as he does about any receiver within the NFL.
He simply would not suppose the Minnesota Vikings star will repeat his efficiency from the season opener — 11 catches for 184 yards and two touchdowns within the 23-7 beating of the Packers on Sept. 11 — when the 2 groups meet once more at Lambeau Discipline on Sunday.
“You’ve got simply acquired to be actual: He do not leap in no tremendous swimsuit and dress and leap outdoors, you hear me?” Alexander mentioned Thursday. “I do not both, generally. However he [is] human, is what I am saying. We ain’t placing an excessive amount of on no person.
“He is a very good receiver. However on the finish of the day, I am a very good nook. We have got actually good corners, we have actually good linebackers, D-line, no matter it’s. You do not wish to put an excessive amount of concentrate on that one individual as a result of it is like, the primary recreation, that was a fluke.”
Alexander, who was named to the Professional Bowl this season for the second time in his profession, mentioned Jefferson is amongst his high three receivers.
“Davante Adams No. 1, and I feel [Miami’s Jaylen] Waddle would possibly’ve snuck in there as of this previous weekend,” Alexander mentioned. “I feel he is a very good receiver.”
Each Alexander and fellow cornerback Rasul Douglas downplayed this season’s first assembly. In reality, they mentioned they didn’t spend any time going again to look at movie of what Jefferson did when he had six of his catches for 158 yards and each touchdowns within the first half.
“I do not actually keep in mind that recreation,” Douglas mentioned. “I type of knocked all of the first-half-season video games away.”
Nonetheless, it is not like Packers defensive coordinator Joe Barry has ignored that first assembly. The defensive coaches included a number of of these performs of their movie cut-ups this week.
“In an NFL soccer season, it was a very long time in the past,” Barry mentioned. “However we studied it and we checked out it and naturally there’s issues that they did that they nonetheless do. So, after all we checked out these issues. However you reside and be taught from each expertise, and that is positively one we realized from and on to the subsequent one.”
Since then, Douglas has moved from the slot place to an out of doors cornerback spot, and Alexander has been used from time to time to comply with a particular receiver all through a recreation — a technique Barry didn’t make use of in opposition to Jefferson within the opener.
“Properly, [Jefferson] goes to get his touches,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur mentioned. “As a matter of reality, it is humorous you ask that as a result of I used to be taking a look at his game-by-game manufacturing, they usually do a fantastic job of transferring him round. That is why it presents some challenges. Except you simply wish to go lock him and play man, which opens a brand new can of worms each snap, it is onerous to simply account for the place’s going to be. I feel you have to do a fantastic job of giving him totally different appears, however you all the time acquired to be aware of the place he is at on the sphere.”
The Packers (7-8) can be eradicated from playoff competition with a loss Sunday mixed with a win by both the Detroit Lions (over the Chicago Bears) or the Washington Commanders (over the Cleveland Browns). Even when they win their final two video games, they will want assist in the type of both one loss by the Commanders or two losses by the Giants to get in.