Jaire Alexander nearly fumbled the coin flip for the Green Bay Packers before the last week’s win against the Carolina Panthers had “nothing to do” with the organization’s decision to punish the All-Pro for one game for his behavior, according to the team.
On December 27, the Packers suspended Alexander for one game for conduct judged detrimental to the team, prompting many to believe it was as a result of Alexander’s actions in the pregame against the Panthers. He had appointed himself captain and then misspoke when the Packers won the coin toss, nearly depriving them the right to start the second half if the referee had not explained his intent.
After the game, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur called Alexander’s actions “a big mistake,” but he later clarified that their decision to suspend him had “nothing to do with the whole incident” and suggested it was a culmination of other issues
I’ll just say this: It’s never for one thing,” LaFleur said Wednesday. “But like I said, I think there’s a lot of lessons along the way for everybody involved, and hopefully we learn from them. I think we will, I think there will be better communication moving forward. And like I said, I think Ja is going to be here a long time. He’s a helluva player and just looking to move past this and learn from this, and we’ll all move forward and be better from it.”
The Packers will now be without Alexander in a must-win matchup against Justin Jefferson and the Minnesota Vikings in Week 17.
Packers Mix Messages on Jaire Alexander’s Suspension
The Packers are now saying two different things about Alexander’s suspension. LaFleur says the coin-flip incident in Week 16 had “nothing to do” with the team suspending him for one game, but general manager Brian Gutekunst indicated in his statement about the suspension that Alexander’s actions played at least some role in the decision
“Unfortunately, Jaire’s actions prior to the game in Carolina led us to take this step,” Gutekunst wrote on December 27. “As an organization, we have an expectation that everyone puts the team first. While we are disappointed, we had a good conversation with Jaire [on Wednesday] morning and fully expect him to learn from this as we move forward together. We look forward to welcoming him back next week as he is a valued member of this team and will continue to be in the future.”
