Why the Panthers should re-sign Tre Boston for safety depth

After a successful draft for the Carolina Panthers, there are still areas on the roster that the team can address to improve depth.

It’s no secret that the Carolina Panthers went out and had one of their franchise’s best drafts. While they picked up some quality college prospects in many key positions, the safety spot still remains an area where the team could use some additional depth.

Currently, the Panthers are looking at having Juston Burris and Jeremy Chinn as their starting safeties. Backing up the duo as it stands are Sam Franklin, Myles Hartsfield, Kenny Robinson, Sean Chandler, and JT Ibe, which means there is little in the way of experience to call upon.

With the current depth at safety, the Panthers should look at adding another player to the list should the opportunity arise. A cheap and familiar option to go with would be Tre Boston, who spent five seasons with the Panthers over two spells before being released following a disappointing 2020 campaign.

Boston was not a notable defender last season for the Panthers, but he did rack up 95 tackles, one interception, and four defended passes. Over his career, the former North Carolina standout has amassed fifteen career interceptions.

Tre Boston would give the Carolina Panthers experience on the backend.

However, one of his most notable qualities is his ability to stay healthy. In his past two seasons with Carolina, Boston started in a total of 32 games for the Panthers. After seven years in the NFL, he’s played in a total of 104 games and is renowned for being an enthusiastic member of the locker room that inspires others around him.

The Panthers will need some healthy quality backups on defense entering this season. Fans have been accustomed to losing some talent to injuries in past seasons, and Carolina needs to have the right people ready to step up if needed if the same problems resurface next time around.

Carolina released Boston shortly before the free agency period got underway, and fans have seen the team bring back veterans after being let go. The Panthers will need to look at how much cap space they will have left after signing their rookies, with 11 prospects needing to be signed after some unprecedented movement in the trade market by general manager Scott Fitterer.

From there, the Panthers could look at how cheap they could get Boston for, even though they are still technically paying him dead-cap money following his departure.

Moreover, since Boston has a lot of ties to the area from his time in college and the NFL, he could choose to return to Carolina if no other team is interested in him. More experienced depth at safety could really help the Panthers out if they need someone else this season.

I think the Panthers would benefit from Boston’s veteran leadership in their secondary. No matter what happens, Carolina should be decent in this area in 2021 thanks to the additions of Jaycee Horn, Keith Taylor Jr., and A.J. Bouye as well as Chinn moving to the backend from outside linebacker.