Darius Slay loves the NBA and the Detroit Lions‘ cornerback has attended plenty of games in the past. As a result, he got to befriend Andre Drummond, one of the noticeable faces of the Detroit Pistons.
Thursday, Drummond was dealt out of town unceremoniously and reacted strongly to that. Slay noticed, reaching out to his friend and wishing him well, while saying he gave his heart and soul to the city.
Here’s a look at what Slay had to say after the deal took place:
Obviously, Slay understands what it’s like to be a major athlete in Detroit, so his commentary on the matter makes sense. Certainly, Drummond was one of the longer tenured athletes in the city at this point, so the team’s move to ship him away caught many by surprise, including Slay.
It’s a nice tribute offered up by Slay in the moments following the deal.
Darius Slay’s Stats
Slay has been elite himself in the Motor City since being a second round draft pick of the Lions back in 2013, and has developed into one of the elite shut down corners in the entire league. He’s also a star for the Lions in the community, and arguably, is one of the top faces of the franchise at this point in time.
This past offseason, Slay missed the OTA period for Detroit amid wanting a new contract. While the Lions haven’t worked anything out with him yet, they also haven’t closed the door on making his re-signing a priority in the future, meaning a trade is possible if the team wants to move on. Slay also had a strong reaction to the team dealing Quandre Diggs for a draft pick a few months back.
There’s no doubting how valuable Slay has been to the Lions considering 347 tackles and 19 interceptions in his entire career. Slay has also
Darius Slay’s Uncertain Future
Like Drummond, Slay has likely come to realize that things can and do come to an end in terms of tenures in sports.
Even as the Lions held on to Slay at the 2019 deadline, the team could be aggressive with their cornerback this offseason on the open market if an extension is not reached. According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, while Slay might not have made sense to be traded in October, a deal could be struck in the offseason to move the cornerback to a new location who might be more apt to give him a new contract.
Here’s what Birkett wrote:
“I’d be surprised if the Lions dealt Slay, their best cornerback – even if he hasn’t played at a Pro Bowl level this year – before Tuesday’s deadline. The more likely scenario is that the Lions send Slay to a team willing to give him a new contract at some point before next year’s draft.”
The contract seems to be the big sticking point with Slay. Are the Lions prepared to shell out the cash to Slay for the long term? He is 28 years old, and is theoretically in his prime. Cornerbacks, however, can have a short shelf life, especially if they get dinged up. This past season, Slay suffered a bulky hamstring, which was injured in a game against the Philadelphia Eagles in September.
Slay maintains a good relationship with plenty of Detroit personalties, so only time will tell if he sticks it out in the future snd remains a fixture himself, or merely gets traded.
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Darius Slay Responds To Andre Drummond’s Trade From Pistons