Philadelphia Eagles: Watch Darius Slay’s insane interception (video)

The Philadelphia Eagles have an interception problem.

On offense, they have two; one to Trevon Diggs and another to Anthony Brown.

Is that ideal? No. Obviously, teams want to turn over the ball as infrequently as possible, and when you give it away twice in the same game versus a division rival like Anthony Flippin’ Kiedis, you’re going to struggle to win games.

But do you know what? Considering Hurts has thrown the ball about a thousand times so far this season – the real number? 145 and counting – a 96-2 touchdown-interception ratio isn’t too shabby.

Defense, however, has been a completely different story.

Despite playing zone coverage more than any other team in the NFL and being targeted in coverage a ton, the Eagles’ defense had recorded one pick through the first four games of the season, with the lone INT through four weeks belonging to middle linebacker Eric Wilson.

Well, in a very welcomed turn of events, the Philadelphia Eagles finally broke their interception-less streak with an absolute banger by Darius Slay on an errant pass by noted Ghostbuster former third overall pick Sam Darnold.

Let’s hope Slay’s pick is a sign of things to come for the Philadelphia Eagles.

In Detroit, Darius Slay was one of the best playmaking cornerbacks in the NFL.

Over seven seasons of action, initially under Jim Schwartz and then Dave Caldwell/Matt Patricia, Slay picked off 20 passes in 122 games of action, including an out-of-this-world eight interception All-Pro season in 2017.

While Slay’s coverage skills have largely remained as advertised as he traded in his Honolulu Blue jersey for the decidedly less colorfully named midnight green, his interception totals never quite traveled over from the Motor City to the South Philly.

In 2020, Slay was targeted 90 times. He allowed 69 catches for 851 yards and three touchdowns but only logged one pick for his troubles, a 25 yarder he recorded versus the Dallas Cowboys in Week 16.

Well, it only took five weeks in 2021 for Slay to match his 2020 total, and believe you me, this is one that needs to be seen to be believed.

https://twitter.com/Eagles/status/1447252514122907652?t=s2efAYyPU7LnbzFXvtJuSA&s=19

Gosh, it’s nice to see Sam Darnold hasn’t completely abandoned his former ways.

Deployed in off coverage on what looks like a classic cover two look, Slay read Darnold’s eyes the entire play and jumped on a comeback route meant for D.J. Moore and instantly turned into a punt returner, picking up roughly 15 yards on the return to set up a redzone opportunity for Nick Sirianni and company.

Granted, Philly only got three points for their efforts, as the Eagles are going to Eagles, but that isn’t on Slay per se; he did his job and kept the game close in what felt like the longest first half in NFL history.

Is Jonathan Gannon’s scheme still a work in progress? Yes. While both Darius Slay and Avonte Maddox recorded incredible plays in coverage that will indeed remain on their respective highlight reels forever, the defense’s bend-but-don’t-break philosophy has continued to be tested by an offense that is average at best without Christian McCaffrey. But hey, at least fans got a fleeting bit of excitement thanks to a pretty pick by Mr. Big Play; this season, we should collectively cherish those moments.