The Pittsburgh Steelers signing Darius Slay seemed like a long time coming. Slay had talked about the Steelers' interest in him multiple times over his career, but a one-year, $10 million deal that was fully guaranteed signaled the right time for Slay to come to Pittsburgh.
“Mike Tomlin, one of the best coaches in the NFL, man,” Slay said on his podcast, Big Play Slay in 2024. “What’s so crazy is I almost was going to them, too. They hit me up, too. T.J. Watt text me, Cam Heyward text me, and they talked about me coming there. Before I ever got to make a decision, they signed Pat Pete, so they kind of chilled out for a minute. But I was almost a Pittsburgh Steeler as well.”
Now, he gets to play for Mike Tomlin. However, it was not that easy for Slay to sign with the Steelers. After his release from the Philadelphia Eagles, not only did the Eagles try to get back on a cheap deal, but multiple other playoff teams circled around Slay, trying to sign him.
“I had some teams call,” Slay said. “I had some great teams interested. Buffalo was interested. Detroit was. (Arizona) was. Even the Giants was. The Colts were, I think, for sure. And, of course, Pittsburgh.”
Slay has one, maybe two years left in him at 34 years old. The Steelers add him to a cornerback room that has struggled to find consistency over the years. Now, with Slay in the fold, they hope that can be changed. Slay should be an excellent mentor to a room that has needed it amid rocky play.
Slay gets to play in a scheme he is comfortable in under defensive coordinator Teryl Austin. Slay played in Vic Fangio’s heavy quarters scheme while with the Eagles, and will now be switching to more of a Cover 3 and man coverage scheme.
Pittsburgh wants to win a playoff game this years and they are looking to the improvement of Slay over other secondary players they let walk to make that difference.
