Philadelphia Eagles: Through 4 weeks, Darius Slay looks like an All-Pro

Darius Slay has come as advertised for the Philadelphia Eagles.

When Howie Roseman and the Philadelphia Eagles pulled the trigger on a trade for standout corner Darius Slay this past offseason, fans of the team were rightfully excited. The Eagles had been without a true CB1 for years, and Slay was one of the best in the business in terms of locking up dudes one-on-one.

Despite the heavy list of accolades that Slay carried with him upon his arrival in Philadelphia, there were some small concerns regarding his future play. He had a slight down year in 2019 in terms of statistics, his tackling looked poor at times, and he was set to turn 30 years old in January. However, despite all the hidden concerns, Slay has gone above and beyond during his time as an Eagle thus far.

Through the first four games of the 2020 season, Slay has been completely lights out in coverage. Despite being routinely tasked with shadowing opposing team’s best receiver, Slay hasn’t balked in the slightest. He’s been targeting 27 times, allowing just 18 receptions for 180 yards. He’s yet to allow a TD in coverage, and opposing QBs have a lowly passer rating of 85.4 when targeting Slay.

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Slay has allowed just 10 yards per completion (a career-best at the moment), and he’s continued to gut out injures while DBs around him drop like flies. Despite the Philadelphia Eagles concerning 1-2-1 start to the 2020 season, Slay has been simply phenomenal.

The biggest thing that stands out with Slay is the fact that opposing quarterbacks just don’t really target him. Despite going up against above average WR1s like Terry McLaurin and AJ Green, Slay just hasn’t seen a lot of balls being thrown his way. This goes to explain the fact that he’s yet to record an interception, as QBs are simply doing everything in their power to avoid throwing his way.

It’s pretty hard to force interceptions when you’re seeing less than seven balls thrown your way per game.

Outside of the stereotypical coverage stats, the Eagles currently lead the NFL in total sacks forced (17), and part of that can be attributed to Slay’s elite coverage on the outside. The Eagles have always had a strong D-Line, but opposing WR1s were getting open so fast that it essentially didn’t matter who Philly was lining up on the edge. Now, with Slay locking up the likes of McLaurin and Green on a weekly basis, it’s giving the Eagles elite pass rush plenty of time to get home.

The Philadelphia Eagles have been starving for a legit lockdown corner since the days of Asante Samuel, and it’s unfortunate that it looks like they’re stumbling towards a rebuild the year they finally get their hands on one. Slay would’ve undoubtedly played a huge role during the team’s playoff runs in 2017 and 2018 (had he been on the team back then), and it’s a shame that we might not see him in the postseason anytime soon.

Regardless of how the Philadelphia Eagles season ends up, acquiring Slay has proved to be an excellent move by Howie Roseman and the rest of the Philly front office. He’s somehow come better than advertised, and he’s making life easier on his teammates surrounding him.