Patriots receiver Brandon LaFell was asked about what it was like to face Darius Slay, but it was sort of a long shot to get an answer.

It had been nearly 10 weeks since New England dismantled the Detroit Lions, and Slay isn't exactly a household name. LaFell was getting ready to play in a Super Bowl at the time of the question, and had much bigger things on his mind.

But he remembered.

"No. 23, right?" LaFell told MLive. "Of course I remember him. That dude can really ball."

LaFell had one of his best games of the season against Detroit, hauling in nine passes for 98 yards in a 34-9 win in November. Those were his second and third best totals of the season, respectively. But almost all of that production came against players not named Slay.

He ripped Rasean Mathis for five catches, while Glover Quin and Cassius Vaughn were culpable for one apiece according to ProFootballFocus.

LaFell had two catches for 23 yards while matched up against Slay, and weeks later still remembered how Slay made everything difficult for him.

"He was one of the best DBs I faced this year, man," LaFell said. "He's one of those guys who has a motor. No matter what the score was, or how far ahead we got, or how many plays we ran on them, it seemed like he was full speed every step."

Slay is coming off a big sophomore season for the Lions. He started every game, piling up 61 tackles and a team-best 17 passes defended. He allowed a completion on just 57.3 percent of the passes thrown his way, which was ninth best among corners who played at least 1,000 snaps.

He allowed a passer rating of 81.1, which was seventh best.

Overall, Slay finished the season rated 19th at the position according to ProFootballFocus.

Detroit is tickled by Slay's rapid development, and hopes he'll be part of the cornerstone of the defense moving forward.

"He could be the future of this franchise," veteran cornerback Rashean Mathis said. "And there's not too many people you can say that about."

Slay has always been a blazer. His 40-yard dash time of 4.36 seconds at the combine was the fastest by any cornerback in the last two years.

But Slay has worked to develop the physical side of his game under coordinator Teryl Austin, as well as with some private tutelage from Hall of Famer Rod Woodson. And that is what impressed LaFell the most.

"That guy good lateral movement," LaFell said. "He was real quick, had a real good transition. Real physical at the line, so he's one of those guys you have to be real physical with. Try to beat him to the spot, and not let him push you around."

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