The Carolina Panthers have been frequently speculated as a landing spot for the former Pro Bowl corner.
The Green Bay Packers released Pro Bowl cornerback Jaire Alexander on Monday. Given the relatively slow news cycle and otherwise dry free agent pool, fans of just about every team are going want their team to make a run at him and justify why they should in fact be his preferred destination.
The Carolina Panthers actually have a legitimate case to be at or near the top of his list. They have a decent setup on the outside with Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson, but a healthy Jaire Alexander turns that corner group into one of the more intimidating ones in the league. From the Panthers side, they’ll feel comfortable that the room would be solid enough to withstand missed games from the recently injury prone Alexander.
But the big appeal is simply where the Panthers are located. Alexander grew up in the Charlotte area, attending Rocky River High School in Mint Hill, which is a suburb of Charlotte. And this isn’t just fan pontification because of his hometown. He clearly has love for where he’s from. While he was at Louisville, he talked about wanting to return to Charlotte in the future, and he tried to stay in the Carolinas to play college football, but it didn’t work out. When his Packers were visitors at Bank of America Stadium, he made himself an honorary captain for the pregame coin toss and almost made a mess of it.
Alexander’s love of Charlotte is quite apparent, and now there’s a potential union with his boyhood team sitting right there. The Panthers should be interested if the price is right, and this is one of those rare instances where a hometown discount might actually be in play. Hunter Renfrow reached out to the Panthers so he could get an opportunity to play for the team he grew up near. There’s a chance Jaire Alexander could do something similar, and the Panthers should definitely entertain the idea.