With the Pittsburgh Steelers' cornerback room led by Jalen Ramsey after the trade from the Miami Dolphins, another addition the team made in the secondary could prove to be beneficial in many aspects. The Steelers would sign Darius Slay Jr., formerly with the Philadelphia Eagles, as the veteran would speak about his major role with the team.
Speaking with the media on Monday afternoon, Slay expressed that one of his “special gifts” is to be a mentor to players in all age ranges, which is something he takes “pride” in. He would even reveal what he told star cornerback Joey Porter Jr. about helping him become the best player he can be, according to Chris Adamski.
“I take pride in that, I feel like that's one of my special gifts, and one of my favorite roles is being in this game is being a mentor to young guys or guys as young as me or guys that's post my age,” Slay said. “Just helping out and sharing my knowledge of the game to make them become a better player, so that's why my job is too.”
“I even told Joey myself,” Slay continued. “Like, ‘I'm here to help you to become the best version of yourself and whatever you need from me, just ask and I'll give it to you, I'm not here to hide no details, I'm not here secretly competing against you about who's going to be the best corner.' I ain't on that, I'm more of the time of helping him become one of the best in the game.”
Steelers CB Darius Slay on being in the role of sage veteran leader pic.twitter.com/8VRHxV9Z7K
— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) August 25, 2025
Darius Slay on why he was signed by the Steelers
As some in the football world believe there is a power struggle among the Steelers cornerbacks, Slay seems to know his role within the team as mentoring the players due to his aforementioned experience in the league. However, Slay will still play a key role physically on the field as the team is likely to run a lot of press coverage, something that the 34-year-old understands.
“That's how I earned a lot of money, playing man,” Slay said last month, via Adamski. “And that's why he brought a lot of us here.”
An issue that was talked about among the football world was about a knee injury to Slay, as said by Adam Capland of Fox Sports, but the player himself would downplay the situation, according to PennLive.
“I just came off playing in the No. 1 pass defense. Does it look like my knee is an issue? I don’t feel anything there. It’s fine,” Slay said.
At any rate, Slay and the Steelers are looking to make some noise in the upcoming season as the team tries to improve after finishing 10-7 last year, finishing second in the AFC North. Pittsburgh opens the season on Sunday, Sept. 7, against the New York Jets.
