Stefon Diggs and Jaire Alexander in a fiery exchange before Texans vs. Packers
Even after switching teams, Stefon Diggs still has unresolved tension with a familiar adversary.
Before the kickoff on Sunday, the wide receiver for the Houston Texans had an intense confrontation with Jaire Alexander, a cornerback for the Green Bay Packers, requiring intervention from others to calm things down.
The encounter between Diggs and Alexander involved a verbal exchange near the Packers’ sideline, where Diggs was seen swatting at Alexander. Packers coach Matt LaFleur stepped in between them, while cornerback Keisean Nixon reached out to Diggs, who responded with a shove. Soon after, a Texans staff member and several referees managed to pull Diggs away as more Packers players arrived on the scene. Alexander then returned and seemingly pushed Diggs’ face mask, escalating the situation further.
After the game, Diggs explained that the conflict began as he was going to the locker room and overheard someone “chirping.”
“I’m never going to be the bigger person,” Diggs stated. “I’m not letting anything slide. I’m not into that football tough guy nonsense.”
Despite Diggs only managing to rack up 23 yards with five receptions—his lowest performance of the season—the Packers clinched a 24-22 victory thanks to a last-minute 45-yard field goal from Brandon McManus.
“These players have a past,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans mentioned during the postgame press conference. “They’ve clashed before. Our focus needs to be on playing the game correctly and not getting caught up in trash talk. We have to execute when the game starts.”
This altercation isn’t the first time Diggs and Alexander have clashed.
The two were rivals in the NFC North from 2018-2019 during Diggs’s time with the Minnesota Vikings. They had another heated moment in 2022 when both exited the Highmark Stadium tunnel simultaneously following the Buffalo Bills’ victory over the Packers.
“I don’t care who initiated it, but I ended it,” Diggs commented post-game. “I walked away with the win.”
(This story has been updated with additional information.)