The Cardinals have signed veteran safety Tre Boston to a one-year deal, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Boston’s signing indicates (at last) movement in the free agent safety market, which had been incredibly stagnant since free agency opened back in March. While players such as Kurt Coleman and Tyrann Mathieu received contracts early in the free agent process, other defensive backs like Boston have failed to land deals. At present, free agent safeties Eric Reid and Kenny Vaccaro are still unsigned.
Boston met with the Colts and Cardinals earlier this summer, and while he wasn’t happy with the outcome of his Indianapolis meeting, Arizona reportedly “rolled out the red carpet” for the 26-year-old. That initial impression probably didn’t hurt the Cardinals’ chances of landing Boston, and his experience with head coach Steve Wilks — who was the Panthers’ defensive backs coach during Boston’s time in Carolina — likely also contributed to his landing in Arizona.
The Cardinals spent time with former Steelers safety Mike Mitchell earlier today, but they’ve instead chosen Boston, who is not only younger, but a better player by almost any measure. In 2017, Boston’s first and only year with the Chargers, he started 15 games and posted a career-high five interceptions. Pro Football Focus graded Boston as the NFL’s No. 30 safety, lauding his pass defense skills but denigrating his run defense.
Boston’s poor run-game work shouldn’t make much of a difference in Arizona, where the Cardinals often play three-safety sets. With Antoine Bethea and Budda Baker available to play closer to the line of scrimmage, Boston will likely spend most of his time in a center field role.
How he stayed on the market this long is a mystery, but this a legit signing.