ALLEN PARK — Darius Slay was the centerpiece of rumblings and grumblings of an anticlimactic trade deadline on Tuesday, but don’t tell the All-Pro cornerback that.
“I told y’all, I don’t care. How do you think I was going to feel today?” Slay said from the locker room on Wednesday. “I was playing my game. I played my game, got a little bit better at Call of Duty. Played a lot of (NBA) 2K and I played a lot of PUBG.
“(I) just ignore it. I just be chilling. My family be good, so yeah, they be great. Of course I’m reading tweets, everybody tweets. ‘Eagles want to trade for me, Eagles want to trade for me.’ (Expletive), I do everything like I do with other tweets. I ignore them.”
Multiple teams called Detroit regarding Slay, and the team did its job and listened to those calls. The Lions were said to turn away the Philadelphia Eagles among others regarding their cornerback’s availability at the deadline.
Related: Lions hang onto Darius Slay, stand pat at anticlimactic trade deadline
Slay, of course, made headlines last week after Detroit sent starting safety Quandre Diggs to Seattle in exchange for a fifth-round pick. He said it didn’t matter if he was in Detroit or not moving forward, and that he just wanted to play ball no “matter where I’m at.”
He doubled down on those remarks when asked if he thought last week’s comments could have got him traded.
“I didn’t care if they did. That’s the thing, at the whole point y’all didn’t understand it that I didn’t care if I did,” Slay said. “It is what it is, the whole business, all I was doing here is playing ball trying to win games.
“Why would they fine me for that? If they would’ve fined me for that, that would’ve been a problem, too.”
Related: Darius Slay says ‘there’s no loyalty,’ doesn’t care if he stays in Detroit
For fans looking for a silver lining in all of this, Slay said he would prefer to play for Detroit “as long as the Lions want me.” He understands it’s a business but added he wouldn’t mind finishing his career playing for one team.
“I’m pretty loved by the fans, I love the fans here,” Slay said. “They’re awesome, I love them. I be doing it for them. They’re a good fanbase, I love the support they give me and you know I just love to support the city.”
The cornerback held out for a new contract in the offseason, which remains a talking point moving forward. Slay will be heading into a contract year in 2020 at 29 years old. When asked about his contract situation, he said the only future he’s thinking about is the one with his family.
“This sports stuff, it comes and goes,” he said. “I feel wanted at home. I don’t care about nobody else wanting me. I got four kids waiting to see daddy walk into the house.”
Related: Lions ‘heavily discussed’ a trade for Falcons RB Devonta Freeman, per report
Slay continues to deal with hamstring issues, and was a limited participant at Wednesday’s practice. Detroit is banged up in the secondary with safety Tracy Walker missing practice in the aftermath of the Diggs trade.
When asked about his availability this Sunday in Oakland, Slay answered with a “we’ll see.”
“From the looks of it, they look like they got one of the fattest offensive lines,” Slay said of the Raiders. “I don’t like offensive linemen, so I’m praying they don’t throw a toss sweep wherever. Big, big fellas. Large. I’m just praying for no toss sweep.”
Related: Lions sign big CB Michael Jackson, activate rookie DE Austin Bryant for practice
