Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Darius Slay has made it clear that he was eager to face the Detroit Lions in the playoffs this past season. Despite having left Detroit years ago, Slay, who spent the first five years of his NFL career with the Lions, didn’t mince words when it came to the matchup he desired. Appearing on the “Pick a Side” podcast, Slay shared that he thought the Lions’ offense was “too cute” for his liking, and he explained why he believed the Eagles’ defense could have handled it with ease.
Slay’s Take on the Lions’ Offense
When asked which team he most wanted to play in the postseason, Slay immediately pointed to the Lions, citing their creative, trick-play-heavy offense as the reason.
“A team I kind of wanted to play was the Detroit Lions,” Slay said. “We was a different type of team. Their defense was physical, but they offense was a cute offense. You know what I’m saying? We call it cute because they did a lot of trick plays, a lot of this and a lot of that.”
Slay didn’t stop there, claiming that the Eagles’ defense, which prides itself on toughness and physicality, would have dealt with Detroit’s offense without any issue. He continued, “We was like, ‘Nah, we don’t want to do that cute s**t,’ because we just knew. We just knew. Yeah, we wanted to play the Detroit Lions.”
The “Jungle” Metaphor: Slay’s Challenge
The Eagles cornerback went even further in his critique, comparing the Lions to a “gorilla at the zoo” before claiming they would have brought the Lions to the “jungle” to truly test their strength.
“They were like a little, one of them gorillas that be at the zoo that just look at you and be just sitting there and eats,” Slay explained. “No, we would go bring their ass to the jungle, and see if they can climb the same trees that we’re climbing.”