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Suffice to say, the 2020 season has not gone as well as Darius Slay expected. Slay and the rest of the Philadelphia Eagles had big dreams and playoff aspirations in his first season with the team. The Pro Bowl cornerback was happily traded by the Lions to the Eagles in the offseason after increasing friction with then-head coach Matt Patricia and salary demands ex-GM Bob Quinn didn’t want to pay.
Flash forward to the second week of December, and Slay’s old team has two more wins than his high-profile new team. And while Slay’s designated replacement in Detroit, No. 3 overall pick Jeff Okudah, has had a rough start to his NFL career, it’s not going any better for the high-priced veteran in Philly.
Slay is having the worst year of his career since his rookie campaign in 2013, when he was benched by the Lions as an overwhelmed second-round pick. Playing in Jim Schwartz’s defense, Slay has had trouble making plays on the ball — something he did better than just about everyone in the league in his Detroit days.
Slay’s stats in coverage, via Pro Football Focus:
51 receptions on 68 passing targets (75% completion rate), three TDs allowed, 219 YAC allowed, QB Rating when targeted of 119.5, five penalties.
His PFF coverage grade of 55.6 ranks 74th among CBs who have played at least 20 percent of snaps in 2020. That’s two spots above former Lions teammate Nevin Lawson, now with the Raiders. Detroit’s Justin Coleman is one place below that. Slay’s overall defensive grade of 56.5 is below Detroit’s Amani Oruwariye, with both ranking in the 70s overall.
It’s not the Slay we knew and embraced in Detroit, the deserving Pro Bowler who played with passion, flair and positive energy. It’s really taken a turn in the last two weeks while facing off against Green Bay’s Davante Adams and Seattle’s D.K. Metcalf, two of the top receivers in the NFC,
Darius Slay over the last two weeks:
16 catches allowed
20 targets
269 yards
2 TDs— Jeff Ratcliffe (@JeffRatcliffe) December 10, 2020
The Eagles made Slay the 4th-highest paid CB in the league after the trade from Detroit, paying him just over $50 million in three years. It’s a move that has not paid off for either party. Detroit’s defense is worse without Slay’s presence, while the Eagles aren’t getting close to the bang for their buck they anticipated.
He’s got time to turn it around, just as Slay, now 29, did after his rocky start in Detroit all those years ago. But he’s on his second straight 3-8-1 team and not doing enough to stop the losing.