Darius Slay made his third straight Pro Bowl last season for the Detroit Lions and despite his peers acknowledging his greatness, critics and analysts felt otherwise.
Slay has taken some heat all offseason for what some deemed a “down year” in 2019, despite the talented cornerback once again being one of the best at his position in a crowded pool of elite guys.
Following his trade to Philadelphia, Slay signed a three-year extension worth $50 million, giving him an annual average value of $16.67 million.
The debate over Slay’s greatness has prompted the Eagles cornerback to scoff at the notion that he’s not elite.
Last season, Pro Football Focus gave Slay a grade of 56.4.
Darius Slay: PFF coverage grade of 77+ in 4 of the past 5 seasons pic.twitter.com/IKv2bjMGiA
— PFF (@PFF) March 19, 2020
That grade placed him 83rd among cornerbacks in the NFL. Unless you’ve been under a rock, common sense allows you to know that Darius Slay isn’t the 83rd best cornerback in football.
Still, Pro Football Focus attempted to explain the grade.
Slay had an all-around bad year in 2019, one that was somewhat uncharacteristic for the eighth-year cornerback. In every season from 2014 to 2018, Slay produced a PFF coverage grade above 70.0, ranking among the 20 best corners in the NFL in four of those five seasons. In 2019, he managed a coverage grade of just 56.9, which ranked 92nd in the NFL and was barely better than his 2013 rookie season.
On Thursday, Slay once again answered his critics, stating that he believes he played “frickin fantastic” last season.
Slay thought he “played frickin’ fantastic” last year. Numbers might not show it but tape does, lots of coaches would want him on team.
— Tim McManus (@Tim_McManus) April 2, 2020
“I had a great year.”
“I think I played freaking fantastic, not going to say an excellent level, but it was dang sure good enough to make a pro bowl three years in row.”
Last season Slay had 36 total tackles, 13 pass deflections, two interceptions, 0 forced fumbles in 14 games played.
Slay allowed 346 yards on 162 press coverage snaps, and 177 yards on 214 off-man coverage snaps, per PFF.
The Lions also had one of the NFL’s worst passing defenses and pass-rushing units, so Slay was essentially a man on an island alone, and still came away highly respected by fans and most importantly, his peers.
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