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Below is a recap of what cornerback Darius Slay had to say about being picked in the second round by the Detroit Lions on Friday night. (Quotes provided by the Lions.)
On having a shot to start as a rookie: "Well, you know, I'm just going in and working hard like I've been doing to get to this point and just wishing for the best. I'm going to compete and get better every day."
On questions about his knee: "I haven't had any surgery or anything, but my knee is pretty healthy right now. I've been working out on it, but I'm great."
On if his knee injury knocked him down in the Draft: "You know, it probably did, probably not. But I'm just thankful that I just got drafted."
On if he has to have surgery: "No, I was told I won't have to have surgery."
On when he will be back to full health: "Well, they didn't say. I feel like I'm moving pretty good right now. So, I feel like I'm real good right now."
On when his knee started to become a problem: "It never really did. They just did an MRI on it. They just said you have a torn meniscus, I guess. That was it."
On when he knew the Lions were going to take him: "I feel like they said if I fall to second they said they were going to grab me. So, I knew when I didn't go in the first day that they were going to pick me up."
On if he had any competition with his teammate Johnthan Banks on who was drafted first: "No, we didn't have any competition. We were just hoping for the best for both of us. It doesn't matter who went first. We were just praying that we both got picked today."
On his visit with the Lions: "Yeah, my visit, they just said that if I'm on the board, they want to get me."
On how he impressed the Lions during his visit: "I guess with my athletic ability and my size and all the skill set that I have. I think it really shocked them to know that I'm potentially a guy who can look like I can play for a long time."
On his style as a cornerback: "Big, strong and aggressive, a real great cover guy."
On how the Lions told him he would fit in with the team: "With my size, they know my size and the speed that I have, you know, being one of the fastest guys at the Combine. They just said they can do a lot of stuff with my talent."
On where he gets his speed from: "My mom and dad, they both ran track. So, I've been pretty fast for a long time."
On where his parents ran track: "My mom ran track in college at Savannah State."
On when he decided to become a cornerback: "Well, I mean, I've always been a running back. But my position on defensive was a cornerback. I've been doing that for the longest so I already knew I had instincts for the corner. I just knew the corner was going to be the position I could get to school in."
On practicing against WR Calvin Johnson: "I'm going to love it. I love to get better. I know what he's going to do. He's going to get me better every day and I'm going to try to get him better every day."
On he and Calvin having "Big Play" in their Twitter handles: "No, I'm not changing mine because that's what I do. I make big plays."
On if he has ever returned kicks: "Yeah, I returned kicks. I was the number one junior college returner in junior college when I came out. I don't know why I didn't this year but I'm looking forward to returning."
On the Lions cornerbacks being big playmakers: "I mean, I think they're all capable of making big plays. They just added me on the team to make more big plays. So, I'm just ready to be there and get there in Detroit and just compete."
On if he knows whether he will return kicks with the Lions: "I went to the special teams coach. They said that they found out that I did returns. So, they will probably let me practice it. But I'm ready to get there."
On what he knew about the Lions before his visit: "I mean, I didn't know too much about the Lions. I just knew about some of the trades they had and I knew about Calvin Johnson. But I didn't know too much about the organization like that. I didn't really study football when I was in college. I was always worried about my opponent I was playing against next."
On facing quarterbacks like Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers: "I'm looking forward to that. I love to compete. I love playing against the best because the only thing it's going to do is make you better. So, just a great opportunity to get better every day."
On proving that he's one of the best cornerbacks in the draft: "I mean, my film will prove it. We're going to see how it all turns out because that's just media how they feel about it. But in my opinion, I always feel like the best. I'm just out here trying to get better. I was happy that he (Dee Milliner) got drafted early. Basically, I'm just thankful to be here."
More from POD:
• Track the Lions' picks in our draft StoryStream
• Do fans approve of Darius Slay pick?