Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Darius Slay. Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Star cornerback Darius Slay returning to Eagles in stunning turn

Originally posted on Sportsnaut | By Vincent Frank | Last updated 3/16/23

It was earlier on Wednesday that several media reports indicated five-time Pro Bowler Darius Slay was being released by the Philadelphia Eagles.

Slay had been placed on the trade block due to a huge 2023 cap hit. But when nothing came to fruition with Philadelphia needing to become salary-cap-compliant at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Slay was seemingly as good as gone.

About that? NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported Wednesday evening that Slay and the Eagles were working on a restructured contract to keep him with the defending NFC champions.

Well, Slay and his wife pretty much confirmed this on social media.

Back like I never left!!! Run it back
— Darius Slay (@bigplay24slay) March 16, 2023

WE HERE BABY!!!
— Jennifer Slay✨ (@jennwilliams23) March 16, 2023

Slay, 32, was playing under a three-year, $50.05 million contract with the Eagles. He had a cap hit of a whopping $26.1 million for the 2023 season.

That just wasn’t doable for a team that has already lost multiple starters and needed to cut fat from the cap. Now that the two sides are nearing a restructure, everything has changed.

Darius Slay returns to the Eagles: What it means

Earlier this week, Philadelphia retained fellow Pro Bowl cornerback James Bradberry. It was a surprising move given the market he had received in free agency.

The Eagles now have both of their starting cornerbacks back as they look to run it back in 2023. One of the better cover guys in the NFL, Slay performed at an exceptional level for the Eagles last season.