Steelers' Darius Slay Joins Colin Cowherd In Ripping PFF's Ridiculous Latest Grades

For fans of the Pittsburgh Steelers, there are not many people who they despise more than Pro Football Focus (PFF). It feels like there is almost a vendetta between the company and the team, as Pittsburgh players usually end up getting disrespected because of whatever their models say. Even Colin Cowherd, an analyst who has been very harsh on Aaron Rodgers, felt the need to blast them recently for how they disrespected the quarterback. Sure, he's not elite anymore per say, but he has been more productive than not during the 2025 season thus far.

The disrespect didn't stop there, however. Instead of letting an analyst say something for him, cornerback Darius Slay took to X to personally call out PFF for allegedly getting his statistics from Week 4 completely wrong. 

The biggest question that fans have with PFF is how they get their stats and what kind of analytics go into their much-maligned grades. In this case, there are questions about how they think Slay gave up 123 yards all by himself. Quarterback Carson Wentz did have 350 passing yards on the day, so it's reasonable to believe that at least one defensive back had a terrible game overall.

240 of those yards came from the Minnesota Vikings' top two receivers, Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. The former had 10 receptions for 126 yards, while the latter had just four receptions for 114 yards, and neither had a touchdown. Between them, there were a lot of chunk plays to quickly and effectively move down the field and get in position for someone else to eventually get the score. 

On paper, it makes sense to blame the top cornerbacks for the Steelers: Slay and Jalen Ramsey. However, the cornerback room was decimated all throughout the game. Ramsey tried to play through a hamstring injury, but he couldn't. Now, he will likely miss at least one game. Meanwhile, Slay was also on and off the field dealing with issues of his own, among other problematic setbacks during the contest.

Steelers Have Logical Reason For PFF's Wild Stat

In the fourth quarter, the Steelers had a brutal miscommunication, which led to Addison getting wide open for an 81-yard gain. Slay was definitely a part of that, although whether he was supposed to follow Addison or not is unclear. PFF likely determined that following the star receiver was his job, so those 81 yards counted against him specifically. Maybe it was his job; maybe it wasn't.

If that play did count against him and we take it off, Slay was only responsible for 42 yards against, which is great. Context is key, as stats never tell the whole story. Instead of praising him for a great game overall, PFF opted to post their stats and not give any explanation for how they happened. Analysis like that is why many fans struggle to believe what the company says on a consistent basis. 

By the time Slay responded to the post on X, he had most likely already watched film of that game. If he knew that he was responsible for covering Addison and following him down the sideline, it wouldn't make sense for him to call the analytics company out like that. He's not here to play the blame game either, but sometimes, the disrespect coming from PFF is just too much to keep quiet on.

It still is possible that Addison was Slay's responsibility. Maybe it was Juan Thornhill's. Defensive Coordinator Teryl Austin did take the blame for that play happening in the first place after the game, as defensive scheme is sometimes too complicated for the players. It was definitely some sort of zone defense, which Pittsburgh tends to struggle in. Either way, PFF should get their facts straight before seemingly throwing players under the bus.

What do you think about Slay's response to PFF? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.

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