Richard Sherman: Darius Slay 'doesn't get enough credit' because he plays for Lions

If the Detroit Lions decide to trade Darius Slay in the coming weeks, another team will be getting a player whom Richard Sherman considers on the short list of the best cornerbacks in the NFL.

Asked at Super Bowl 54 to name the top cornerbacks playing today, Sherman mentioned a group of cover men that included Slay, New England's Stephon Gilmore, Buffalo's Tre’Davious White, the Rams' Jalen Ramsey, Jacksonville's A.J. Bouye, Denver's Chris Harris and Miami's Xavien Howard.

“I study them every year,” the San Francisco 49ers star said. “That’s how you get better. You can’t be complacent. You can’t think you’ve arrived and that you have all the answers, and you can’t get any better because every year there’s guys with new techniques, new footwork, new hand placements, new adjustments that you can add to your game and make you a better player.”

Sherman and Slay have expressed admiration for each other before.

The two signed and exchanged jerseys after the Seattle Seahawks beat the Lions in the playoffs in January 2017, and Sherman invited Slay to join him at a cornerback summit he held for some of the game’s top defensive backs at Stanford in summer 2018.

At the time, Slay called Sherman “the best cornerback in the league picking the deep ball.”

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Asked what he admires about Slay’s game, Sherman said it was his playmaking ability.

“Slay doesn’t get enough credit and that’s, once again, the market he’s in and sometimes the team doesn’t have a lot of success,” Sherman said. “But he’s one of the quickest, most athletic cornerbacks in our game. Outstanding ball skills. I think over the last five or six years, he has the most pass breakups and interceptions.

"He’s a ball hawk, man. He’s a ball-hawking guy and I have the utmost respect for his game and I enjoy watching him play.”

The Lions must decide, likely in the next month, whether to sign Slay to a contract extension, try to trade him before the draft or force him to play out the final year of his deal.

Slay is set to make $10 million in base salary this fall, well below the going rate for a top cornerback, and has indicated on social media that he wants a new deal that will make him the highest-paid defensive back in the NFL.

The Lions rejected Slay’s bid for a new contract last offseason, and he responded by skipping voluntary spring workouts and mandatory June minicamp. He reported for training camp on time, tied for the team lead with two interceptions and 13 passes defensed, and made his third straight Pro Bowl.

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The market for top cornerbacks is expected to soar this offseason with both Ramsey and White potentially in line for new deals. Still, the Lions may be reluctant to give Slay, 29 years old and entering his eighth NFL season, another long-term contract.

On the trade market, Slay likely would fetch a Day 2 pick, though the Lions would be left looking for his replacement in free agency or the draft.

Harris, 30, who reportedly turned down an extension worth more than $12 million from the Broncos last fall, is expected to be one of the top free-agent cornerbacks on the market when the 2020 league year opens in March. The Lions own the No. 3 pick in the draft, and Ohio State’s Jeffrey Okudah is considered a top-five talent and scheme-fit for Matt Patricia’s defense.

Slay, speaking on radio row at Super Bowl 54, said he’d welcome the opportunity to play with Okudah in Detroit, and he beamed when told how complimentary Sherman was of his play.

“That’s my dude,” Slay said. “I learned a lot from him. We groom each other. That’s my dude.”

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett. Read more on the Detroit Lions and sign up for our Lions newsletter.