Matt Patricia did and said things we know Darius Slay hasn't forgotten, but Slay is taking the 'all business' approach to a reunion with his former head coach in Detroit.
Matt Patricia certainly had some major issues in relating to players during his less than three seasons as Detroit Lions head coach (it still feels like it was longer than that, doesn't it?). No former Lions player had bigger issues with Patricia than former Lions cornerback Darius Slay, was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2020.
Patricia particularly, and for some reason, took issue with Slay joining offseason workouts with other players, doing so in from of the entire team (h/t to SI.com for Slay's quote about the episode).
"He (Patricia) told me in front of the whole team, in the team meeting room, showed clips of me in practice getting a ball caught on me in practice,” Slay has explained about the 2018 meeting. “I posted a picture (on social media], and Patricia told me, ‘Stop sucking this man’s private.’”"
Even heading into the most recent Super Bowl, on "Opening Night" talking to reporters, Slay stillcarries a chip on his shoulder based on the disrespect Patricia showed him when the two were in Detroit.
As the Eagles trended toward hiring Patricia to a spot on their coaching staff, perhaps not coincidentally, Slay was given permission to seek a trade. He ultimately stuck around, with a two-year, $42 million contract extension in his pocket. Patricia was hired by Philadelphia as a senior defensive assistant.
Darus Slay taking the only approach he can to reunion with Matt Patricia
Slay was back in Detroit for Calvin Johnson's charity golf outing on Monday. Via the Detroit Free Press, he called the reunion with Patricia "cordial". But based on volume of words, it's a topic he clearly didn't want to dive all that deeply into. And there probably isn't much to say about the current circumstance between the two.
"It's another day at the office," Slay said. "We both got the same goal, just going out there to compete and win a championship, so that's the main focus.""
Slay is taking the only approach he can, and should, to his reunion with Patricia. He isn't necessarily working closely with his former head coach, and they're working toward a common goal in Philadelphia. It's strictly business.