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Lions cornerback Darius Slay is coming off a big year, and the club hopes he's even better in his third season.

(Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)

ALLEN PARK -- Calvin Johnson, Ndamukong Suh and Matthew Stafford formed the nucleus that helped pull the Detroit Lions out of their historic struggles in the late aughts.

But after riding that triumvirate to two playoff berths, the Lions could soon be searching for their next generation of stars.

Suh is eligible to become a free agent in six weeks, and is expected to test the market. Johnson turns 30 years old next season, and already has started to show some initial signs of wear and tear.

But Rashean Mathis thinks the Lions' next big star could already be on the roster: Cornerback Darius Slay.

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

Slay was selected in the second round of the 2013 draft, but initially struggled with the transition from Mississippi State to the pro game. He especially had issues handling the size of NFL receivers, as well as picking up the zone concepts.

So Slay retooled his game last offseason, thanks to the tutelage of Mathis and defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, as well as a five-day stay at the home of Hall of Fame cornerback Rod Woodson.

Woodson told MLive he expected Slay to take a huge step forward in his third season. But Slay ended up making that leap in Year 2.

Slay was the 92nd-best cornerback in 2013, according to ProFootballfocus. He jumped to 19th in 2014, and yielded a stingy passer rating of 81.1.

Especially encouraging were his performances against some of the league's best passing attacks. Aaron Rodgers posted a 56.3 passer rating when targeting Slay in Week 3. Tom Brady diced up the Lions, but had a 77.7 rating against Slay. Tony Romo checked in at 39.6 in the playoffs.

There were blips, too, like the 155.7 passer rating Slay allowed against New Orleans. But days like that were the exception.

And when Slay is at his best, he can beat anybody. He showed that against the Cowboys, when an injury to Mathis forced Slay to cover Dez Bryant most of the day.

Bryant, a first-team All-Pro, managed zero catches when matched with him. Zero.

"That's part of a breakthrough, just being able to be consistently good," Mathis said. "And that pushes you past the good stage. That makes you not just an average or a good corner. That puts you in an elite state at our position, and that's not easy to do. It's not easy to be consistently good at our position. So when it is shown that it can be done, respect is given.

"He gained a lot of my respect this year, just for being consistent. Because I've played next to a lot of corners, and it's not too many that have been consistent."

Slay said he intends to return to Pleasonton, Calif., this offseason to work out again with Woodson. And if he continues his ascent, could become the star cornerback many envision him to be.

"If he can correct all his negatives, by the third year, I think that's when you're going to see glimpses of greatness," Woodson said last offseason.

That would be a huge boost for the Lions, who face some uncertainty on defense.

They must decide whether to bring back Mathis, a free agent who turns 35 before the start of next season, or acquire someone to start alongside Slay. And then there's that whole matter with Suh up front.

If Suh leaves, the DNA of that defense will change dramatically. They'll be looking for other stars to develop, and Slay is as good a bet as any of making that leap.

Mathis says he'll do his best to ensure that happens, regardless of whether he plays for Detroit next season.

"We're going to continue (working together) this offseason," Mathis said. "He lives like 20 minutes from me, so he's going to have to handle me beating up on him in golf, FIFA, whatever else.

"He's grown tremendously on the field. And I think he respects me enough to listen to me off the field. So that's what I'll be instilling in him, regardless of what the outcome (is) of me being here or not. Just let him know what his future can hold."

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