Detroit Lions: Five reasons why Darius Slay’s frustration was justified

Reason #2: Vibe check

The aspect of change can be a difficult to thing to deal with. Not just in the NFL, but in life in general. It’s safe to say that Matt Patricia’s style of coaching is vastly different from Jim Caldwell’s.

Matty P is a hard-nosed, get in your face and yell-type of coach. It’s a trait that was capture on film during the Senior Bowl earlier this year. Some players respond well to that, and some players don’t.

Going from Caldwell’s laid-back style of coaching and mid-day practices, to Patricia’s constant yelling, swearing, and grueling early morning practices can be a rough transition for a player. Not to mention the excessive amounts of conditioning added on.

In other words, there was a serious vibe check in Detroit. (Generation Z will understand)

Darius Slay had been in a routine when it comes to practice, games, etc. It can be frustrating when a first-time head coach comes in and disrupts that routine. Disrupting someone’s routine and causing change while sounding cranky can be super annoying at times.

In the NFL, you must prove yourself to get respect. With Patricia being a first-time head coach, I don’t believe he had earned the respect to start chewing out and yelling at players.

It didn’t help how Detroit struggled either. Once a team starts to lose, it can be easy to point at the new guy and question his ways, especially since the troubles didn’t seem to start until Patricia arrived.

Obviously, Slay found a way to adapt to the change as best he could so he could keep playing on Sundays to his credit.