The Green Bay Packers head to California to take on the No. 1 seeded San Francisco 49ers and their top-flight offense following a big win over the Dallas Cowboys this past weekend in the Wild Card round.
But while the game was won, the Packers lost star cornerback Jaire Alexander after he re-aggravated an ankle injury he had been dealing with for a week.
Alexander didn’t return in the game, but Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur remained hopeful that the cornerback could play against the 49ers this weekend.
“He’s doing better. Just getting treatment,” LaFleur said Wednesday, via USA Today’s Ryan Wood. “We’ll see where he’s at tomorrow. We’ll have some real reps tomorrow, and hopefully he’ll be ready to go.”
#Packers coach Matt LaFleur sounds hopeful on Jaire Alexander despite not practicing today: “He’s doing better. Just getting treatment. We’ll see where he’s at tomorrow. We’ll have some real reps tomorrow, and hopefully he’ll be ready to go.”
— Ryan Wood (@ByRyanWood) January 17, 2024
The loss of Alexander would be huge for the Packers considering the offense they’ll face this weekend.
The 49ers boast an offense that scored the third-most points this season with the fourth-best passing offense in the league with Brock Purdy under center.
Alexander played a crucial role in the Packers’ latest win, too, with an interception and seven combined tackles before his injury.
While Green Bay pulled off the win despite Alexander’s departure, the defense still ended up allowing 32 points to the Cowboys by game’s end.
The 49ers should deploy a pretty balanced attack with their cavalcade of skill position players – from running back Christian McCaffrey and tight end George Kittle to wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel.
That’s a lot of firepower to contend with, even if the Packers had a fully healthy Alexander in the secondary.
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