Tre Boston on receiving support from the Panthers both on and off the field
The past few months have been quite an important time for Carolina Panthers safety Tre Boston.
This offseason he got the long-term deal he was looking for in a three-year, $18 million contract with the Panthers. But he has also watched many of his former teammates move on, from Luke Kuechly to Greg Olsen to Cam Newton, and new, younger players join the team, including all seven defensive draft picks.
All of that combined with the much-needed renewed push for racial equality has required and allowed Boston’s voice to be amplified in more ways than one.
On the football side, for the entire roster there is a significant amount of learning to be done with a new coaching staff. Until training camp takes place, all of that will continue to be virtual through June 26. Learning on the fly is something Boston is used to after only joining the Panthers in mid-training camp last year on a one-year deal.
“It’s a role that I’ve been in for years, especially having to come in just during training camp and dig into the teams that I’ve had to dig into, becoming a leader. Kind of just on a platform now where we know that I am the leader of this group, being a seven-year vet,” Boston said. “I think it’s a position that I have respected and I have grown to know that it’s coming, now.”
Boston is coming off a strong season that helped him earn his new contract. He finished tied for the team-high with three interceptions, in addition to 11 passes defensed and 68 tackles. Since 2017, he has only allowed 13 catches from 35 targets in primary coverage, according to Pro Football Focus.
With so many rookies joining the roster, in addition to players with less experience like Donte Jackson, Juston Burris and Eli Apple and veterans Eric Reid and Ross Cockrell being released, Boston is now the veteran leader among the secondary group.
This all happens to come at a time when a significant portion of the players on the roster have never met in person.
“There’s a lot on the plate right now, I can say that,” Boston said. “But we can all look for differences or we can look for similarities. And right now we’re a team that’s finding the extra 1 percent. We know what we’re stacked against. We know we’re a team that pretty much 95 percent of us don’t even know what each other’s faces look like. We know we’re a team that has a new coach. We know we’re a team that has only five returning starters. We can talk about that or we can fix it.
“And right now, it’s about having that ownership and we’re taking that ownership of knowing where we’re at and we’re going to get better each and every day. I don’t care if we’re on Zoom. I don’t care if we’re doing a test on our phone. It’s about attacking those tests and everything that we do with a purpose and knowing that we’re trying to get great. Not just good. We’re trying to get great on these Zooms and take advantage of them.”
While the players aren’t able to fully practice together on a field, they are continuing to work together in another way, as well.
Boston was part of a group of Panthers that participated in an justice walk last week in protest of police brutality and social injustice in the wake of the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. He also has had the opportunity to talk with white friends and teammates about everything he is feeling right now and truly be listened to.
Support is also coming from the Panthers organization, which is new to Boston. Unlike his first experience with the team from 2014-16 when Jerry Richardson was the owner, David Tepper has encouraged players to speak out on things they believe in and allow them to work to put action behind it. Tepper and Boston have had multiple conversations on the phone. The new support the safety has received from the Panthers has extended beyond the football field, as well.
“I think as individuals, we all want to be respected and loved, and in our workplaces, we want to be heard and understood where we’re coming from and especially when we’re articulating and trying to actually have these dialogue talks,” Boston said. “It’s somebody who is doing it the right way that I appreciate because, again, me coming back was, there were long talks about stuff like this happening and it’s amazing to feel that you have the support to be able to talk and you guys know I’ve talked before, but to actually have the support behind it and people speaking up, it means a lot to players.”
Boston is showing his leadership in a variety of ways this offseason. But he is also having the opportunity to show what he believes in. What is also new for the 27-year-old is that he’s not just doing it for himself. The future of his 14-month-old son, Tre Jr., is also now involved.
“I’ve never really have had to envision that being my son yet. I’ve envisioned this fight being for me, other people’s sons, other people’s brothers, uncles, fathers, but to come home (from the protest) and realize like, wow, really I’m protesting for my son’s future as well, for him to have a better future,” Boston said. “It’s surreal because I never imagined having to protest for the same things that my grandparents protested for. But it was a privilege to be out there because it was my time.”
This story was originally published June 13, 2020 at 2:00 AM with the headline "Tre Boston on receiving support from the Panthers both on and off the field."
