It was mere days ago that Darius Slay expressed his interest in remaining with the Eagles organization. Things could change fast.
On Friday morning, it was reported by Dianna Russini of ESPN that the Eagles have granted Slay’s agent permission to seek a trade.
The Eagles are reportedly interested in retaining Slay, so this may just be a player-focused move so that a player under contract can get a bit more of an idea what teams would be willing to offer for his services and provide a bit of an evaluation.
The move also likely comes as Slay’s contract has to change for the Eagles; Slay carries a team-high cap hit of $26,111,000 in 2023, which is more than 11% of the total cap space.
That’s simply not going to be an acceptable number for a team looking to compete for a Championship to spend on a single cornerback.
Most likely, the Eagles and Slay are also working on a potential restructure and/or extension. If things on that front can’t work out, however, the Eagles would certainly be open to grabbing an extra pick or two in the draft and looking to grab another player like Devon Witherspoon to try and get some cost-controlled players at the position.
Of course, the draft is no sure thing and the only other experienced corner the team has under contract is Avonte Maddox, who has shown he cannot play outside effectively. Zech McPhearson has only had limited snaps on the outside.
The Eagles acquired Slay in 2020 via a trade from the Lions. He made the Pro Bowl in 2021 and this past season. He was also named to the NFLPA’s inaugural All-Pro team this past season.
