Over the past thirty years, the Green Bay Packers have rarely entered a wildcard playoff game as underdogs given they had back to back Hall of Fame quarterbacks Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers. Unfortunately for them, they are heavy underdogs to the Dallas Cowboys as ESPN only gives the team a 26.5% chance of victory against America’s Team. While Dallas clearly has a roster with exceptional levels of star power, Green Bay will be able to counter with a little star power of their own.
Packers Expecting Two Superstars to Play Against Cowboys
Luckily for Green Bay, they are expecting to have both All Pro cornerback Jaire Alexander and wide receiver Christian Watson available for their wildcard matchup with Dallas. The announcement was dropped on twitter by NFL Insider Adam Schefter on Sunday afternoon.
CB Jaire Alexander and WR Christian Watson are both active for Green Bay today.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 14, 2024
Both players were expected to be game time decisions as Alexander has been dealing with a shoulder/ankle injury and Watson was struggling with a nagging Hamstring injury.
Alexander has been one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL since he was drafted with the 18th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. He has become one of the best lockdown cornerbacks in the NFL and will be essentiall in trying to slow down elite wide receiver CeeDee Lamb. Without Alexander, the team has struggled to maintain depth in the secondary and would be left extremely thin.
Although he is one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL, he has only played in seven games this season as he has struggled with injuries this season and was even suspended for the Week 17 game against the Minnesota Vikings after appointing himself captain for the overtime coin toss the week prior.
Packers CB Jaire Alexander out here pregame cutting and backpedaling on that ankle he rolled in practice this week. A game time decision, the pregame work is a big part of deciding his availability pic.twitter.com/KHuQ1nsybt
— Jane Slater (@SlaterNFL) January 14, 2024
While Alexander provides a massive boost on the defensive side of the ball, Watson has become one of the more consistent receivers on the Green Bay offense and is a welcome red zone target for quarterback Jordan Love’s playoff debut. Watson has had 28 receptions this season for 422 receiving yards and 5 touchdown receptions. While he is only fourth on the team, he also only played 9 games this season as he has struggled with injuries.
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