Philadelphia Eagles star cornerback Darius Slay insisted he does not want to leave the franchise after he was made available for trade.
On Friday, it was reported the Eagles had given five-time Pro Bowler Slay permission to seek a trade from other teams. Slay joined the Eagles via trade in March 2020 and became a cornerstone of a fierce defence renowned for harassing quarterbacks with an NFL-leading 70 sacks - 15 more than any other team - as well as 17 interceptions, tied third in the league this past season.
On Saturday, the 32-year-old addressed the rumours on his podcast to let the infamously passionate Philadelphia fans know a trade is not his desire. Slay also made it clear that he understood the business and there was no hard feelings towards the Eagles franchise.
“I just want my fans to know, Slay did not ask to be traded,” Slay said on his Big Play Slay podcast. “But this is part of the business. There's no bad blood against neither one of us, me or (general manager) Howie (Roseman). None of that. We all good.
“Great understanding, just the business part of it. A lot of guys go up for trade, you know, it got a lot of money involved in this situation. It's nothing big. Nothing too serious, man. It's part of the business.”
Since arriving in Philadelphia, Slay has scored twice on two fumble recoveries while he has been named to the Pro Bowl in each of the last two years. He is due a $17million base salary in 2023 with a cap number of $26.1m while Philadelphia are just $6.6m under the cap ahead of free agency, according to Over The Cap.
Selected by the Detroit Lions in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft, Slay experienced just two post-season trips during his seven years in Motor City while he could boast a winning record in only three seasons. His third and final winning campaign with the Lions - 9-7 in 2017 - was Slay’s finest individual season as he led the NFL with eight interceptions alongside Kevin Byard of the Tennessee Titans.
Slay was named a First-Team All-Pro as a result. Across his 10-year career, he has snagged 26 interceptions and scored four defensive touchdowns - and he used his veteran understanding to break down the situation from a business standpoint.
“If my job requires me to go elsewhere, then I'll go,” Slay added. “You know, I'm gonna enjoy my love, fun. I got a lot of years left in this game. I love this game, man. So it's only right for me to finish off strong.
“I’m hoping for anything. Any great opportunity to go out and help an organisation win. So, I'm looking forward to seeing this. I've been here before and I ended up as an Eagle. We'll see where I end up now.”
Slay is open to leaving the franchise if needed, but he would rather stay in Philadelphia. He concluded: “I do want to finish my career as an Eagle, but we'll see. We'll be looking forward to it. Got time here, but best believe, I do want to be an Eagle.”
