Joe Douglas continues to build out his staff and surround himself with some of the most respected front office minds in the league. He recently hired Phil Savage as a senior adviser, Rex Hogan as assistant general manager and Chad Alexander as director of player personnel.
Alexander will play a big role in the scouting and player evaluation wing of Douglas’ staff and will work closely with Hogan. Alexander spent over 20 years with the Ravens in various personnel positions and he and Douglas worked together closely when the two were with the Ravens.
Here are three things you need to know about the Jets’ newest director of player personnel.
Long-time scout
Much like Douglas, Alexander has a ton of scouting experience.
He began as a Ravens pro personnel assistant in 1999 before becoming an area scout in 2003. Alexander served as the Ravens area scout in the West, Midwest and Southeast until he was promoted to assistant director of pro personnel in 2009.
Many of the players Alexander scouted turned out to be huge successes in Baltimore – linebacker Terrell Suggs, offensive lineman Michael Oher and cornerback Lardarius Webb. While his job was primarily to scout college players, Alexander also helped create scouting reports on NFL opponents and kept an eye on teams’ practice squads for potential signings.
Played college football at Wake Forest
Another thing Alexander and Douglas have in common – they both played football at the collegiate level.
Alexander played tight end and running back at Wake Forest for three years from 1994-1997. He didn’t have a prolific college career, though, only playing in 17 total games over three seasons with only four receptions for 19 yards. Coincidentally, the coach of the Demon Deacons at the time was Jim Caldwell, whom the Jets interviewed for their head coaching position in January before hiring Adam Gase.
Father had a long coaching career in NFL
Alexander’s father, Hubbard, coached some of the greatest NFL wide receivers of all time.
He coached future Hall of Fame wide receiver Michael Irvin with the Dallas Cowboys until 1997 and then coached fellow future Hall of Famers Randy Moss and Cris Carter with the Minnesota Vikings from 1998-1999. Hubbard finished out his NFL coaching career with the New Orleans Saints, where he helped Joe Horn earn three consecutive Pro Bowl selections from 2000-2002.
