The Pittsburgh Steelers made a massive splash at the end of June, trading for star cornerback Jalen Ramsey and Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith from the Miami Dolphins. However, in that trade, they sent away All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.

Several players, including Cam Heyward, have opened up about how they felt about the trade. Now, appearing on The Richard Sherman Podcast, new Steelers cornerback Darius Slay shares his thoughts on the trade.

“When I saw the trade go through, I’m thinking it was just some draft picks,” Slay said. “I thought it would be me, [Ramsey], Minkah – all of us back there. I’m like, ‘This [is] gonna be crazy.’ Then I [saw] the final results like, ‘This is a little different.’ [But] I’m looking forward to it.”

Even with the Steelers trading Fitzpatrick, their secondary looks much better on paper than it did a season ago, and this cornerback room is as deep as it’s been since the Steelers’ last Super Bowl run.

Even at the age of 34, Slay played well in 2024 and helped the Eagles win the Super Bowl. He posted a PFF coverage grade of 68.9, which ranked 50th out of 222 cornerbacks. Putting him alongside Porter and Ramsey should give Pittsburgh both talent and depth in the defensive backfield.