LATROBE, Pa. -- Darius Slay had hoped to face Pittsburgh wide receiver Antonio Brown for a second straight practice after being beat by him on multiple deep passes Tuesday. The Detroit Lions cornerback, though, never got that chance.
Slay sat out of Wednesday’s joint practice with the Steelers with a medical issue.
“He had a situation that we just wanted to calm down a little bit from an injury standpoint,” Lions coach Jim Caldwell said.
Slay wouldn’t stop to talk with the media after practice. Caldwell said it was not Slay’s hamstrings that were the issue after Slay joked Tuesday that Brown was trying to wear Slay’s hamstrings out. Caldwell also said it was not a mental situation after Slay was repeatedly beaten by Brown, who Slay called the “best in the business.”
“It was us more than him,” Caldwell said. “It was a medical situation.”
Caldwell would not say exactly what was wrong with Slay, though. Slay appeared to be walking fine after practice, so it does not appear to be a long-term issue with the cornerback who signed a $50.2 million extension before training camp opened.
Slay is the Lions’ clear-cut top cornerback this season. In his absence, veteran Darrin Walls took first-team reps in his place. Walls also replaced Slay with the first team late in Tuesday’s practice during 11-on-11 drills.
