Cleveland Browns: Malcolm Butler or Trumaine Johnson in 2018 NFL Free Agency

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Malcolm Butler, 27 years old, 4 years experience

Butler is famous for a couple big moments in the Super Bowl. Back when the Patriots won Super Bowl XLIX against the Seattle Seahawks, it was the unknown rookie out of West Alabama that stole the show. The undrafted Butler picked off the infamous pass from Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson at the one-yard line, which wound up being the play to seal the win.

From there he became a fixture in New England’s defense until Super Bowl LII. This time it was for the wrong reasons as Butler was benched for the game — and it looks like that benching also signaled the end of his tenure with the Pats.

Vitals

Height: 5-11
Weight: 190-Pounds
Career Tackles: 205
Career Interceptions: 8
Pass Deflections: 47
Forced Fumbles: 4
Defensive TDs: 0
Estimated contract per Spotrac: 5-years, $65 million

No one seems to know the true story of why Butler was benched in his final game with New England, but the defense sure could have used him. Without the talented corner, the Pats were gashed by the Philadelphia Eagles and their backup quarterback Nick Foles.

While Butler would have helped, it’s foolish to think he would have come out there and shut the Eagles down by himself. He’s a technically sound corner, and has as much confidence as anyone in the league — but he does have limitations.

The biggest being his lack of size. Butler is a good second corner but as the No. 1 guy he may not be the top option. New England brought in Stephon Gilmore to go up against the elite receivers with size. In the past, they had to put players like Logan Ryan and Eric Rowe on the taller guys and felt the need to upgrade. They let Ryan walk and replaced him with Gilmore. They could be just as comfortable replacing Butler with Rowe.

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