DENVER — The Eagles are trained for two types of fumble recoveries: a city fumble and a country fumble. A city fumble is the term coaches use for a loose ball in a confined area, and players are instructed to jump on the ball and secure possession. A country fumble is a ball in space, when players can try to pick it up and make a play.
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“If you’re in West Chester, then you can scoop and score,” said coach Nick Sirianni, evoking the Philadelphia suburb. “If you’re in downtown Philly, you have to get down on the ball.”
Urban planners can debate how to categorize cornerback Darius Slay’s game-changing fumble recovery and return for a touchdown that was the biggest play in the Eagles’ 30-13 win over the Denver Broncos, but there was no question for Slay. Jumping on the ball was not an option.
“Hell, no,” Slay said. “I’m trying to score whenever I touch the rock.”
DARIUS SLAY MADE A HOUSE CALL. 82 YARDS. #FlyEaglesFly
📺: #PHIvsDEN on CBS
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/1Ij278UtfV— NFL (@NFL) November 14, 2021
The Eagles clung to a narrow 20-13 lead late in the third quarter. Jalen Hurts had just thrown an interception, and the Broncos faced a fourth-and-1 at the Eagles’ 22-yard line. They kept their offense on the field and lined up with only one wide receiver in a heavy personnel package. Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater handed the ball to veteran running back Melvin Gordon, who jammed through the line.
Eagle Davion Taylor, an earnest second-year linebacker returning to the state where he played his college football, tried to make a tackle hoping to keep Gordon behind the line of scrimmage. While dragging Gordon down, Taylor knocked the ball loose.
“It was not intentional, to be honest,” Taylor said.
Slay stood on the outskirts of the play seemingly hoping for a favorable spot from the officials. All of a sudden, he saw the ball bounce in front of him and a Broncos offensive lineman tried to grab it.
“I snatched it out of his hands quick,” Slay said.
But Slay’s ball security was as bad as Gordon’s. The ball slipped out of his hands. Slay still wasn’t going to treat it like a city fumble. If you thought Slay would simply fall on the football, you don’t know Slay. His nickname is “Big Play” for a reason, and he’s one of the Eagles’ highest-paid players because he’s expected to create … well … big plays. Slay secured the ball off a dribble, ran in one direction (with the ball flopping in his arms), stopped, and then turned around the other way.
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“There were a couple of people on the headset who said, ‘Go down!'” Sirianni said. “And we’re like, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa — don’t go down!'”
Slay’s change of direction bought him space, and once he caught his stride, he accelerated through the Broncos offensive players, most of whose chase-and-catch skills aren’t exactly up to snuff. Still, Slay’s vision on the return would make a running back proud. His speed would earn him respect among receivers. He knew the Broncos were in 13 personnel, which meant there was one thing on his mind.
“They had nothing but fat guys out there,” said Slay, who ran a 4.36-second 40-yard dash at the 2013 scouting combine. “They ain’t catching me.”
The Eagles defenders turned into blockers, although the penalty-prone group made a concerted effort to avoid illegal blocks. Slay ran unimpeded for the touchdown, jogging the final few yards like someone with a healthy lead in a race. The Bronco with the best chance of bringing Slay down appeared to be Bridgewater, who seemed to make a business decision to avoid any tackle attempt on the three-time Pro Bowler.
“I was hoping Teddy didn’t try to (tackle me) because I would have given him a good (stiff-arm),” said Slay, who is friendly with Bridgewater from their time competing against each other in the NFC North.
Slay and Bridgewater spoke after the game and Slay asked the quarterback whether he was going to try to tackle him. “Slay, you know I can’t tackle you!” Bridgewater said, according to Slay.
One person who tried to keep pace with Slay was Sirianni. When he saw Slay running toward the end zone, he raced in that direction out of excitement. It’s been almost two decades since Sirianni was a receiver at Mount Union.
“I’m still out of breath from running down the sidelines,” Sirianni said. “The altitude was real for me.”
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The return was officially marked on the stat sheet as 83 yards. When all the ground he covered while he ran is factored in, including the change of directions and sprinting through and around offensive players, he ran 128.9 yards, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. It’s the most yards traveled on a touchdown from scrimmage since 2016.
“I felt like it took me at least 30 minutes,” Slay said when he was asked how long it took for him to catch his breath.
Darius Slay traveled 128.9 yards in total distance on his scoop-and-score touchdown, the 2nd-most by a ball carrier on a TD from scrimmage since 2016.
The Eagles win probability increased from 68% to 91% as a result of the play.#StatThat | Powered by @awscloud pic.twitter.com/0JqMnuiDNi
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) November 15, 2021
Slay returned a fumble for a touchdown two weeks ago against Detroit, which was his first touchdown in an Eagles uniform. His returns prompt some playful ribbing — “He runs like a bad kid when the ball is in his hands, no ball security or nothing,” DeVonta Smith said — and he hasn’t been shy about how he thinks he could do on offense. Slay and Smith switched sides in practice this week to compete against each other. Sirianni joked Sunday that he’s been impressed with what he’s seen from Slay with the ball in his hands.
“I’ll have to think about getting Slay on some offense here going forward,” Sirianni said.
The game changed with Slay’s return. The Eagles’ win probability improved from 68 percent to 91 percent, according to Next Gen Stats. Had Slay jumped on the ball, it would have been a change of possession, but it still would have been a one-score game with an entire quarter remaining. The return made it a two-possession game, which was why it was the most pivotal play of the afternoon — and one of the key plays of the season for a defense that has tried to emphasize takeaways.
“That turned the momentum totally in the game,” Lane Johnson said.
“That’s a nail in the coffin right there,” Slay said.
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Although the return was significant, it shouldn’t entirely overshadow the clutch forced fumble.
Taylor didn’t start playing football until he was 18 at junior college. His first major college game came for Colorado three years ago on the same turf as Sunday’s game. Before that August 2018 contest, he strolled the field, scanning a stadium with 76,125 seats and the names of some of the great players in NFL history hanging from the upper deck. He told himself he would play there one day as a professional.
On Sunday, he stepped off the team bus, dropped his bags in the locker room and walked out onto the field. He twice took the path from three years ago, reflecting on the significance of the moment. It’s only the beginning. The 2020 third-round pick had a limited role as a rookie, but he has emerged as a starter in recent weeks and had his best game in Denver: seven tackles and two forced fumbles.
“Now my dream is coming true,” Taylor said. “I get to play in the stadium I told myself I would play in in an NFL game. I saw my dreams come true today.”
On Slay’s touchdown, Taylor didn’t even know he forced the fumble until he rewatched it on the screen. When he saw Slay with the ball in his hands, Taylor was looking for someone to block, but he didn’t know where to go because of Slay’s elusiveness. Slay is only supposed to return country fumbles. When he first scooped up the ball, though, it might have been considered at least a heavily developed suburban area.
The fumble rules don’t apply as much to Slay.
“That could have been both,” Slay said. “All I know, city fumbles, country fumbles, they both turn into touchdowns.”
(Photo: Jamie Schwaberow / Getty Images)