Getty Darius Slay during a game against the Browns.
The Detroit Lions have Darius Slay on the market after another busy few weeks of rumors, but up until now, there’s been nothing concrete on which teams might be interested in the star cornerback.
Based on his talent level, it’s easy to speculate who might have an interest in Slay, but finally, a few teams may have come to the forefront with some direct interest in the cornerback. According to Tony Pauline of ProFootballNetwork.com, the teams near the top of the pack in Slay trade talks are the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams.
Here’s what Pauline wrote in his latest mailbag update of the situation:
“I am told right now the two teams at the top of the pack to land Slay are the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams. The Rams are interesting considering they traded for Jalen Ramsey last year. The Broncos are expected to lose Chris Harris in free agency so Slay would slide right in.”
Denver has been speculated as a potential landing spot for Slay for a while, but the Rams would be interesting given the fact they already have a big money commitment in their defensive backfield.
Both teams have second and third round picks to offer, with the Rams having picks 52 and 84 and the Broncos having multiple third round selections to dangle in addition to pick 46. Denver has picks 77, 83 and 95 to offer in potential talks, which is plenty of firepower.
Lions Reportedly Shopping Darius Slay
Last Monday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter revealed that the Lions were talking with multiple teams about a trade of Slay. Conversations were ongoing, and as Schefter said, the Lions are adamant about getting value for Slay.
Lions have spoken with multiple teams about a potential trade for Pro Bowl CB Darius Slay, per sources. Any team that trades for Slay would have to compensate Detroit and Slay with a new deal. Other teams believe Slay will be traded this off-season, but Lions adamant on value.
Detroit demanding value makes sense, especially considering the fact that the team would lose an elite player out of their secondary if they dealt Slay away. It’s possible the Lions could be looking for a second or third round pick in exchange for Slay.
Darius Slay Stats
Slay has been elite 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, 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 ago.
There’s simply no doubting the importance of him to the team in both the short and the long term. For that reason, keeping Slay around could be considered a slam dunk move.
These pair of suitors could eventually make the Lions a deal they can’t refuse.