Philadelphia Eagles: Watch Darius Slay score yet another defensive TD

The Philadelphia Eagles traded a third and fifth-round pick to the Detroit Lions for Darius Slay for two reasons: Big plays and man coverage.

In his first season out of Honolulu Blue, Slay provided both of those aspects of the game, albeit at a slightly lower level than some fans had hoped, but on a team that finished out the season with a very Detroit-esque record, “Big Play” was far from the team’s biggest issue.

And yet, some still questioned whether or not Slay had a long-term home in South Philly, or if it would be better to cash out on the final years of his prime in favor of loading up on draft capital OKC Thunder-style.

But now? 11 weeks into the 2021 NFL season? Yeah, I don’t think any Philadelphia Eagles fan worth their wings would want to trade Darius Slay unless the bounty is Herschel Walker-level, as he just keeps making huge plays and scoring defensive touchdowns that need to be seen to be believed.

Darius Slay sent the Philadelphia Eagles into halftime with a sweet pick-six.

Why do you put pressure on a backup quarterback? Because eventually, they are going to make mistakes.

Does it always work? No. For one reason or another, the Philadelphia Eagles have a weird way of making backup quarterbacks look better than they are, but as a general rule, the more you pressure an inexperienced signal-caller – either in terms of total games played or just snaps with the starters – the better the results.

Case and point the New Orleans Saints’ penultimate offensive play of the first half in Week 11.  It was second and five and the Eagles showed a single-high look, with seven players in the box and newly minted DB Avonte Maddox in the slot. Trevor Siemian dropped back and attempted to throw a comeback to his outside receiver right alongside the sideline, presumably to preserve the clock, but Darius Slay ID’d the call, undercut the route, and ultimately picked off the timing pass clean with nothing between him and the endzone but green grass.

The results? Pick-six 27-7 going into the half.

Now, for those keeping track at home, this is the third time Slay has scored a defensive touchdown this season and the first time in his career where he’s scored three touchdowns in a single season. It also marks the first time a Philadelphia Eagles player has scored three defensive touchdowns in the same season since Eric Allen accomplished the feat all the way back in 1993.

At this point, if Slay doesn’t make it to the Pro Bowl, it might just go down as an all-time screwjob right up there with Shawn and Brett.

When a defensive player scores a touchdown, either on a punt return or via interception, it can change the momentum of a game like few other plays can. It galvanizes his teammates, demoralizes the opposing offense, and, ultimately, puts points on the board. While the Philadelphia Eagles can’t count on Darius Slay to start scoring touchdowns on a weekly basis, when he’s on, it’s incredibly fun to see.