6 Free agent safeties Cleveland Browns should consider

5. Earl Thomas, talented but trying warrior

At one time, Earl Thomas was regarded as an All-Universe player, like Rod Woodson, Deion Sanders or Ed Reed. A seven-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro, Thomas dominated opposing wide receivers. A charter member of the Legion of Boom, he really seemed to take away the entire half of the field away from opposing quarterbacks. He was that good.

In 2018, however, he suffered a season-ending knee injury. That was not enough to dissuade the Baltimore Ravens from throwing a ton of cash at him, but his performance was probably diminished significantly. Indeed, in retrospect, his numbers were down in Seattle for the past few seasons.

However, after a fight with teammate Chuck Clark, Baltimore decided to cut him for Conduct Detrimental to the Team, which might allow them to not be liable for the bonus money that they would otherwise owe, a tidy sum of some $10 million. Earlier, in May, Thomas was allegedly involved in an off the field incident involving his wife, another woman and a loaded gun.

The Houston Texans and Bill O’Brien tried to sign him at the end of September, but the Texans’ front office decided their salary cap had been damaged enough already and would not loosen the purse strings. Moreover, there were rumblings that Texan players were not enthusiastic about having him on the team, either.  O’Brien was fired shortly thereafter.

Thomas probably expects a multiyear deal for big dollars. Will he get it? Probably not. The Browns could be willing to offer him a chance to prove that he still has it, but he does not fit their long-term model. He might plug the hole in the lineup for the last half of the season.

A “locker room cancer” can probably be tolerated for half a season. That’s probably overrated. There are plenty of people you have to work with that you may not like. The off-the-field history may be too hot to handle for this team.