Darius Slay Turns Serious When it Comes to Dennard Wilson
PHILADELPHIA - It’s never easy to get the serious side of Darius Slay during his news conferences
The veteran Pro Bowl cornerback likes to have fun playing a child’s game he happens to be very good at.
“Yeah, always always been that way,” Slay smiled when asked about his effusive personality. “You know, just a happy-go-lucky kid. Still is. I just like to have fun for the most part."
Already a star from his days in Detroit, Slay is having arguably his best season in 2021 with three defensive touchdowns and his fourth career Pro Bowl berth as perhaps the best player of what is now the fifth-ranked defense in the NFL.
According to ProFootballFocus.com, Slay has been the third-best CB in the NFL behind only breakout Atlanta CB A.J. Terrell and Los Angeles Rams star Jalen Ramsey.
Helping Slay reach those heights has been Eagles secondary coach Dennard Wilson, who has been mentioned a few times by Jonathan Gannon in recent weeks when the defensive coordinator has talked about the recent success in the secondary or the improvements of young players like Avonte Maddox and Marcus Epps.
SI.com’s Eagle Maven asked the best Eagles secondary member about his position coach Wednesday moments after Slay began his weekly presser with some shoutouts to Asante Samuel’s Hall of Fame credentials, Jason Kelce’s status as the GOAT around Philadelphia, and DeVonta Smith’s impressive suit game.
The mention of Wilson, though, brought out Slay's serious side.
“I'm not gonna sit here and play around,” Slay said. “Dennard, he been a great coach. man. He helped me elevate my game to a whole other level.”
MORE: Howie Roseman has Eagles Ahead of "Transition" Schedule
A former CB himself out of the University of Maryland, Wilson, now 39, had a cup of coffee with Washington before turning to personnel then coaching.
Wilson built a foundation as a pro scout with the Chicago Bears for four years before shifting from evaluation to teaching by snaring a quality control job with the then-St. Louis Rams. He was ultimately promoted to defensive backs coach with the Rams bridging the move from the Midwest back to Los Angeles.
Wilson spent five years with the Rams before moving on to the east coach with the New York Jets as the secondary coach before adding defensive passing game coordinator duties over a four-year span.
Interestingly, Doug Pederson’s final secondary coach in Philadelphia – Marquand Manuel – essentially traded places with Wilson this season as both teams made changes at head coach with New York tabbing Robert Saleh, who had a history with Manuel, and the Eagles going with Nick Sirianni.
“Him being in the league 15 years (I’m surprised) he ain't been a DC yet because the way that he can game plan, the way he's smart because everything he's been telling me, him, (Gannon), and the whole staff, it's been true on the field every time,” Slay said.
Others are noticing now.
Recently CBS NFL insider Jason La Canfora noted that Wilson is getting attention around the league as a future defensive coordinator.
“He's worked under some great coaches, players love him (he played in the NFL), he got a good run coaching college at the time when many of these spread concepts and RPOs were coming in vogue and what I love most about him is that unique background,” La Canfora noted when writing about Wilson’s ascent.
“Wilson has a mix of college and pro background and he also spent four years with the Bears as a scout learning to evaluate talent and understand personnel. Honestly, every rising young coach should strive for that sort of mix.”
Slay can’t believe it took this long for others to finally take notice of Wilson.
“He ain't never steered me wrong, not once yet,” said Slay. “So like I say, I'm just surprised that he's been in the game for 15 years and not had a DC job because he's a smart dude. He played in this league before so I won't be surprised you know, sooner or later, he (will) have one of them jobs."
-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's EagleMaven and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on both PhillyVoice.com and YouTube. John is also the host of his own show "Extending the Play" on AM1490 in South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Eagle Maven and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglemaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.