Darius Slay is getting ready for Super Bowl LVII as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, but he started his career in Detroit. Slay was asked about Patricia’s time with the Lions, and he did not hold back.
#Eagles Darius Slay doesn’t forget the disrespect he got from former #Lions HC Matt Patricia:
“He basically just said, You are not in that category yet, At that time, I only had 1 Pro Bowl but now I’m at 5, so I want to know how he feels about that now.” #FlyEaglesFly
— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) February 7, 2023
“It was weird how he came in like he just bigger and better than all of us. He acted like we asked to be here,” Slay said of Patricia’s introduction to the team. “We do get selected, you know. If we had a choice to pick, a lot of guys would pick a lot of different areas. But, yeah, that was crazy. That was a first.”
Patricia immediately butted heads with Slay, who was coming off an All Pro season and his first Pro Bowl nod. Slay spent the off-season working out with Richard Sherman and Aqib Talib. They were the two of the top corners in the game at that time. He was learning their ways and improving his own game. Patricia was not a fan of that move for some reason.
“I mean, he basically just said, ‘You’re not in that category yet.’ By that time I only had one Pro Bowl, but now I’m at five. I want to know how he feel about that now,” Slay shot back.
Slay was traded to the Eagles after the 2019 season. Detroit went a disappointing 3-12-1 in Patricia’s second year as head coach in the NFL. He wasn’t around when Patricia was fired after a 4-7 start to the 2020 season.
Patricia landed back in New England after getting fired by the Lions. He was back on the sidelines last season, essentially serving as offensive coordinator of the Patriots. Patricia had no experience calling offensive plays ahead of last season, and it was an outright disaster for the Patriots on all fronts.
Asked if he was surprised that New England’s offense struggled so much under Patricia, Slay made it clear that he believes that Patricia is a good coach. But he could not get on board with the way that Patricia treated people.
“As a coach, you know, he’s a smart coach, the X’s and O’s, how to put a guy up,” Slay added. “But it’s just being the man, you know, the disrespect is not what I’m with.”
Patricia’s future in New England is unclear, with Bill O’Brien now back as the offensive coordinator. Meanwhile, Slay is getting ready to play in the biggest game of his career.
The Eagles are one point favorites according to Pennsylvania sports-books. Slay locking down the number one wide receiver for the Chiefs will be critical to their success.
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