Cleveland Cavaliers: J.R. Smith’s suspension was justified but why soup in the first place?

Cleveland Cavaliers: J.R. Smith’s suspension was justified but why soup in the first place? by Ryan Rosko

The Cleveland Browns need a free safety, and signing Tre Boston would help the franchise shore up the position heading into the NFL Draft.

After a strong 2017, former Los Angeles Charger safety Tre Boston is hitting the market. He began his career with the Carolina Panthers, drafted 128th overall in 2014. After three solid seasons, Boston joined the Chargers and broke out in a big way.

He started 15 out of 16 games and finished with 79 tackles and five interceptions. Solid stats, but his impact goes beyond numbers. According to Pro Football Focus, Boston played over 900 snaps at deep safety and finished with an 81.4 overall grade, which ranked 30th out of all NFL safeties.

Nothing special, but he ranked ninth in the NFL with an 87.8 coverage grade. He is proven and is only 25 years old.

This is why the Browns should be interested in him. Jabrill Peppers had a rough rookie season because he was forced to play deep safety for Cleveland. Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams said this was because Peppers was the only player on the team who could do the job.

Peppers didn’t perform very well in his new role, as he consistently played 20+ yards off the ball and took bad angles because of it. In the few games where he was able to play closer to the line like he did in college, he excelled, able to use his quickness in run support and even jumping routes to make an interception in the final game against Pittsburgh.

Thankfully, as ESPN’s Tony Grossi reports, Peppers will play strong safety full-time in 2018.

He will move to box, I’m told. https://t.co/U9wqVPcOcx — Tony Grossi (@TonyGrossi) February 24, 2018

This means the Browns need a free safety, and Boston fits the bill perfectly. A rangy deep safety who excels in coverage would be a huge boost to the Browns’ secondary.

While their cornerbacks aren’t great, safety was the main issue, and primarily why teams were able to average 260 passing yards per game. That number needs to come down, and adding Boston would help.

Signing Boston would also allow the Browns to have more options with the fourth overall pick. They could trade down with a team looking for a QB. Cleveland could revolutionize their offense with Saquon Barkley, or they could solidify their offensive line with Quenton Nelson.

Boston would be a fantastic addition to a secondary that needs drastic improvement. If the Browns can lock down the passing game, they will have a chance to win quite a few games in 2018, provided the offense shows up.