The Las Vegas Raiders have had plenty of turnover in their secondary this offseason, but it could be argued that this was well-warranted. The early part of the 2025 NFL Draft seems sure to yield the addition of a cornerback, but there are questions if anyone will step up and become a certified No. 1 corner.
The Miami Dolphins have sent out the bat signal that cornerback Jalen Ramsey is available, and the Raiders make sense as a possible trade suitor. Pro Football Focus' Thomas Valentine, however, has maintained the premise of the Raiders trading for a veteran cornerback, but he outlined a possible trade with a different team before the upcoming draft.
Raiders should avoid proposed trade for overrated 'star' cornerback
Valentine proposed the following trade between the Las Vegas Raiders and Green Bay Packers, and he detailed why the deal makes sense for both sides.
"The Raiders desperately need cornerback reinforcements," wrote Valentine. "After losing Nate Hobbs to the Packers in free agency, their starters are projected to be Jakorian Bennett and Decamerion Richardson — neither of whom earned a PFF overall grade above 60.0 in 2024. ... Trading for a star like Jaire Alexander, who earned a 78.3 PFF coverage grade — 10th best among cornerbacks — in 2024, is an easy way to improve."
Alexander has likely played his last game as a Packer. However, general manager Brian Gutekunst started draft week by speaking to the media on Monday, and he had no substantive update on the situation.
"We'll work through that. I don't really have any updates on Jaire", Gutekunst said on Monday. "He's obviously on our roster right now. We'll see how the draft goes and see where we're at at that point."
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There's no denying Alexander's talent level, as he has been graded as a top-25 cornerback by PFF during every healthy season since his rookie year in 2018. But Valentine's assertion that he is a star conveniently ignores a major component of this trade.
Alexander has missed 34 games over the last four seasons, including 20 over the last two years. His list of injuries reads like a game of "Operation" (shoulder, groin, back and knee), and the Packers have not hidden their frustration about his injuries.
"Multiple team sources have privately expressed their frustration with Alexander's inability to stay healthy and/or play through injuries," wrote ESPN's Rob Demovsky.
The knee injury that Alexander suffered in Week 8 last season, which landed him on IR for the rest of the year, was aggravated when he tried coming back after the Packers' bye week. Then, he never suited up again, despite returning to practice later in the season. There's a line between a player not being able to play and the team privately questioning his ability to play through injuries. That line has clearly been crossed with Alexander and the Packers.
It makes surface-level sense for the Raiders to have interest in Alexander, with their need at cornerback. But below the surface, he is a headache the Packers desperately want to offload. With a new trio leading the football operation in Las Vegas, the Raiders won't be the sucker that gives up a Day 2 draft pick to inherit that headache.