Slay wants to fill big shoes with Bradberry

[time2rock]

Slay wants to fill big shoes with Bradberry

 

Darius Slay isn’t just a Pro Bowl cornerback. He’s apparently a little bit of a historian too.

At least as it pertains to the Eagles.

Because Slay understands how long it’s been since the Eagles have had a cornerback duo that’s as good as the one they seemingly have this year with him and James Bradberry as the starters.

Slay talked about that last week during an appearance on SiriusXM Radio.

"On the outside, I’ve always been looking in, it’s always been a corner issue here,” Slay said to Alex Marvel and K.J. Wright. "I guess that’s why I got traded here. It’s always been that.

"From my look in, just knowing football too much, there aren’t too many teams that had two top-tier corners that played together in the Philly area, except (Sheldon) Brown and Lito Sheppard. We’re trying to make sure we fill them shoes … they set the trend here, trying to fill them shoes up and compete.”

Brown and Sheppard were two names that came to a lot of Eagles fans when the Birds signed Bradberry earlier this month. Because Slay-Bradberry is probably the best cornerback duo the Eagles have had since Brown and Sheppard over a decade ago. (And adding Avonte Maddox in the mix as a nickel corner only makes it more impressive.)

In fact, when NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Reuben Frank came up with his list of the best cornerback duos in Eagles history, he ranked Brown and Sheppard at No. 2 overall, just behind Bobby Taylor and Troy Vincent.

Brown and Sheppard played together from 2002-07 but really had a five-year span during those years where they formed one of the best combinations in the NFL.

That’s why everyone seems to be so excited about Slay and Bradberry joining forces in Philly for the 2022 season. It’s been a long time.

"I think, the sky’s the limit for me and Bradberry, man,” Slay said. "I’m here to help him. He’s here to help me. We both complement each other. We’re trying to really turn something into something great here.”

From a talent perspective, Slay and Bradberry could end up pretty high on that list of top Eagles cornerback duos but they might not get to play together too long. Bradberry is here on a one-year deal and Slay is already 31. Still, it’s exciting.

Bradberry, like Slay, believes this duo has a lot of potential. But he knows they have to prove themselves too.

"I’ve been watching him since I’ve been in the league and I admire his game a lot,” Bradberry said earlier this month. "And I feel like it’ll be a great opportunity to learn from him but also play alongside him because he’s a great corner.

"Potential only gets you so far, so I don’t want to speak on potential. I know individually we’re pretty good. The goal is to be great together.”

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-darius-slay-wants-fill-big-shoes-james-bradberry

[UK_EaglesFan89]

This could and should be an exciting duo. Bradberry is a very good corner even though he's coming off a down year. 2-3 years ago he was a sought after corner as a FA. I think he's a low end #1 / high end #2. And we all know how good Slay is. 

[brkmsn]

Troy Vincent and Bobby Taylor was a better duo. The problem with Sheppard and Brown was that Sheppard peaked early and Brown peaked later. Sheppard got more accolades because he was a dynamic return man when he got the ball, but Brown became the more consistent, more dependable defender while Lito struggled to play entire seasons. Lito was easily forgotten when we signed Samuel. Bobby Taylor had an inconsistent first several years (but always gave M. Irvin fits), but he peaked at the same time Vincent did and for about 5 seasons, they were a terrific duo.