Eagles' Darius Slay Tears Up Receiving Key to GA Hometown in Super Bowl Celebration

Brunswick, Georgia, held a parade in honor of the newly minted Super Bowl champion.
Philadelphia Eagles' Darius Slay grows emotional during a Super Bowl celebration in his hometown of Brunswick, GA, on Feb. 22, 2025.
Philadelphia Eagles' Darius Slay grows emotional during a Super Bowl celebration in his hometown of Brunswick, GA, on Feb. 22, 2025. / Alessandra Pontbriand / Twitter / Screensho
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Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Darius Slay was honored with the key to his Georgia hometown and a celebratory parade on Saturday after he and his teammates defeated the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX on Feb. 9.

The parade was held in Brunswick, Georgia, where Slay, 35, is originally from. Hundreds of friends, family members, former classmates, and teachers showed up and showed out for the six-time Pro Bowler, whose NFL future is currently up in the air. He still has a year left on his contract, but it's possible the Birds choose to release him to focus on younger talent.

Surrounded by well-wishers and fans, Slay pulled up to the parade in a white convertible, waving to those along the route. Per the Brunswick News, the parade started at an area park and traveled down to City Hall, where several speakers, including Mayor Cosby Johnson, spoke.

"It means a lot man," Slay said, per a video shared online by reporter Alessandra Pontbriand. "It was a great feeling, man, to see this happening. One of my dreams come true, man. Like I said, small kid from Brunswick getting a key to the city, that accomplished a lot, and I'll say that without my family and friends back at home none of this would be possible for sure."

As for his tearing up at one point, Slay said, "I got real emotional. I really don't cry like that. Takes a lot for me to cry. And just seeing that, reflecting on a lot of my past and seeing where I'm at today is something to shed some tears for."

After 12 seasons in the NFL—seven with the Detroit Lions and five with the Eagles—it's awesome to see how much Slay is enjoying and cherishing reaching the mountaintop.

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Brigid Kennedy
BRIGID KENNEDY

Brigid Kennedy is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, she covered political news, sporting news and culture at TheWeek.com before moving to Livingetc, an interior design magazine. She is a graduate of Syracuse University, dual majoring in television, radio and film (from the Newhouse School of Public Communications) and marketing managment (from the Whitman School of Management). Offline, she enjoys going to the movies, reading and watching the Steelers.