Fort Myers native Tre Boston thankful to be home, run camp while waiting for next NFL team
The five-year NFL vet was back at alma mater North Fort Myers hosting a free game for 350 kids on Saturday
Fort Myers native Tre Boston thankful to be home, run camp while waiting for next NFL team The five-year NFL vet was back at alma mater North Fort Myers hosting a free game for 350 kids on Saturday Check out this story on news-press.com: https://www.news-press.com/story/sports/2019/06/29/nfl-safety-tre-boston-fort-myers-waiting-contract/1576020001/
Adam Fisher, Fort Myers News-Press Published 2:04 p.m. ET June 29, 2019 | Updated 7:27 p.m. ET June 29, 2019
Tre Boston invited local kids and area coaches to North Fort Myers High School on Saturday for his 2nd annual Beyond Belief football camp Nicholas Alvarez, Fort Myers News-Press
Tre Boston didn't look like a man stressed about when his next paycheck would come on Saturday morning at North Fort Myers High School.
The five-year NFL veteran was back in his hometown, working with kids at the free football camp he hosted at his alma mater.
Boston smiled as he showed the young players the finer points of drills while teaching lessons about making the right choices in life. During water breaks, he was able to kiss his wife and infant son while sharing laughs with his mother on the sideline.
The relaxed and jovial nature might not be expected from someone waiting for his next pro opportunity, especially with NFL training camps starting in four weeks. Boston started 28 games at free safety the past two seasons with Carolina and Arizona and had eight interceptions, and yet he hasn't found his next team.
Boston said he's at peace waiting to find his next home in the NFL.
"It's all about knowing your worth," Boston said. "I know I'm going to go out (this season) and do something I did last year – play well with the opportunity I'm given."
Boston rests easy because he's a free agent by choice. He said he's turned down "many, many" contract offers from teams that he felt didn't pay him what he's worth.
Photos: Family, fun and football star at Tre Boston's camp
North Fort Myers High graduate and NFL safety Tre Boston leads his football camp on Saturday in North Fort Myers. More than 100 kids attended the annual camp which is part of Boston's Beyond Belief Foundation that benefits Southwest Florida youth. Kinfay Moroti/The News-Press USA Today Network-Florida
More than 100 kids attend North Fort Myers High graduate and NFL safety Tre Boston's football camp on Saturday in North Fort Myers. The annual camp is part of Boston's Beyond Belief Foundation which benefits Southwest Florida youth. Kinfay Moroti/The News-Press USA Today Network-Florida
North Fort Myers High graduate and NFL safety Tre Boston enjoys time with his wife Cierra and 2-month-old son, Tre Jr., on Saturday at his football camp in North Fort Myers. More than 100 kids attended the annual camp which is part of Boston's Beyond Belief Foundation that benefits Southwest Florida youth. "He's his sideline inspiration," Cierra says of Tre Jr. Kinfay Moroti/The News-Press USA Today Network-Florida
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The past two years, Boston has been on one-year contracts. In 2018, he was paid $1.5 million by the Arizona Cardinals, the highest salary since he was taken in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft out of North Carolina.
Boston has spent his time this offseason training on his own in Charlotte, where he lives.
In a recent interview with SiriusXM NFL Radio, Boston said he's worth a contract similar to the deals signed by safeties Adrian Amos and Lamarcus Joyner this offseason.
Amos signed with the Green Bay Packers for $37 million over four years, while Lamarcus Joyner got a $42 million, four-year deal from the Oakland Raiders.
Boston isn't worried. Not after last season. A year ago he signed with the Cardinals the day before training camp started, then started 13 games and made 79 tackles and three interceptions.
"I waited last year," Boston said, "I can do it all over again."
More: Tre Boston launches Beyond Belief Foundation, reflects on year with Arizona Cardinals
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If anything, the UNC graduate sees his free agency as a gift. Boston and his wife, Cierra, recently had their first child. Tre Jr. will be three months old next week.
Boston's father was not involved in his life growing up. That's made him cognizant of the time he spends with his young son and motivates him to be a good dad.
"He's just been enamored with (the baby)," Cierra Boston said of her husband. "I've seen him put forth so many goals for what he wants to do as a father, what he wants to do with his son. He already loved helping kids, and this has made him (love it) even more so."
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Saturday's camp was the second straight year Boston has hosted his Beyond Belief Foundation Football Camp at North Fort Myers. There were 350 kids registered for the free event and a waiting list of 65 more hoping to get in.
Putting on a free camp is important for Boston. Growing up with a single mother and siblings, he couldn't afford to go to football clinics when he was a kid.
Boston teamed with local coaches from North Fort Myers, Island Coast, Riverdale, Bishop Verot and Dunbar (among others) to teach football fundamentals. But the camp is about more for Boston.
His goal is to help kids be successful in life through his foundation. At the camp, there were booths with information about drug and alcohol awareness, safety tips, even CPR.
Boston has worked with the Lee County Coalition for a Drug-Free Southwest Florida for years, and the group was represented at the camp.
"When (Boston is) in town, he's doing prevention," said Coalition executive director Deb Comella. "When he speaks, the kids listen to him. When he says, 'Make good choices,' the kids listen."
Boston is happy to have time to work with his, not be at some NFL minicamp or organized team activity. While he patiently waits for the right contract, Boston considers himself lucky to have time on his own this offseason.
"That's why I'm able to be at home and be at peace with it," Boston said. "Good put this on my plate so I'm able to spend time with my own child. … To see his smile every day, to change every dirty diaper, I take it as a blessing."
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