Darius Slay reveals why he wanted out of Detroit

Darius Slay has gotten his wishes to be paid and traded, and he quickly revealed why he wanted out of Detroit.

Darius Slay made his desire to be the highest paid cornerback in the league and be traded by the Detroit Lions very clear. Both of those wishes were accommodated this week, as he was dealt to the Philadelphia Eagles and the Eagles gave him a deal that will make him the highest-paid corner in the league based on average annual value.

Removing one of the best cornerbacks in the league from the league’s worst pass defense last year looks bad, and Slay’s down season in 2019 was marked by the Lions’ lack of pass rush.

During an appearance on WJR’s “The Mitch Albom Show” Thursday, Slay made it clear why he wanted out of Detroit.

“Shoot, I didn’t have that much respect for Matty P as a person,” Slay said. “It was hard for me to play for him. That’s all that was.”

“He told me I wasn’t elite,” Slay said. “He told me I had no business working out with Richard Sherman and (Aqib) Talib because I wasn’t elite, and those guys are in the elite category and I was just good.”

“Matty P”, of course, is Lions’ head coach Matt Patricia. The same head coach who has a 9-22-1 record over two seasons in Detroit, after being defensive coordinator for the New England Patriots. He’s trying to install the all-business “Patriot Way”, which isn’t wrong. But he doesn’t have Bill Belichick’s acumen to get players to buy in and get it done, with apparent issues in that regard right from the start. Slay’s outgoing personality was not likely to be a fit, and it was proven quickly.

With his history of stifling Cowboys’ wide receiver Amari Cooper, the Eagles are definitely happy to have Slay. And he’s obviously happy to finally be gone from Detroit, as his relationship with his now-former head coach never got any traction.