Cam Newton showed why it’s important he’s on sideline, even if he isn’t ready to play
Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera said Sunday’s 51-13 loss to the San Francisco 49ers provides “good teaching tape,” but in at least one sense, there was real-time tutelage.
Quarterback Cam Newton, who has missed every Panthers game since the team’s Week 2 loss to Tampa Bay, was back on the sideline Sunday at Levi’s Stadium. Rivera said Newton spent most of the game in the Bay Area side-by-side with rookie passer Will Grier, coaching the team’s third-round pick through some of the game’s tougher moments.
“He’s listening and he’s talking about what’s going on out there,” Rivera said of Newton. “He was real close to Will the whole game, and I could see he and Will interacting on things that happened. And a couple of times I looked over when something bad happened, I could see the grimace on his face and him explaining it to Will a couple times. Again, he’s around ... he’s been tremendous.”
In addition to being back on the sideline Sunday, Newton resumed working with trainers during team practice last week. He did not participate in practice but instead did sideline work with head trainer Ryan Vermillion. Newton also posted an Instagram story of himself back on a treadmill.
Then before Sunday’s game, Newton went through a pre-game period of dynamic stretching and throwing drills.
That said — and despite fill-in quarterback Kyle Allen throwing three interceptions against the 49ers — Rivera confirmed that Allen will start Sunday vs. the Tennessee Titans.
“Still rehabbing, still going through the things that he needs to do. He did what he was supposed to Sunday,” Rivera said. “(Kyle) will start again. Cam’s in the middle of his rehab program.”
This will be Allen’s fifth consecutive start this season. Sunday’s rout by the 49ers was both his first loss as a starter and the first time he’s thrown an interception in his NFL career.
Allen finished Sunday’s game 19-of-37 for just 158 yards. He also was sacked seven times, including six in the first half.
Rivera also said although the game was out of hand in the fourth quarter, he never considered putting Grier into the game to get the rookie some NFL snaps. Why?
“... Because we’re playing with a young quarterback to begin with, and he needs the reps,” Rivera said. “He needs the practice, and to learn and grow and understand, and we’ve got some young guys that are playing a lot of football right now, and those guys have got to get as many reps as they can.”
After facing the Titans at home on Sunday, the Panthers will travel to Green Bay for a prime-time game against the red-hot Packers.
But Rivera again indicated, as he navigates Carolina’s swirling quarterback situation, that the team will not rush Newton back before the Lisfranc injury in his left foot is completely healed.
“We’ve got to make sure he’s ready. The last update I got, more so than anything else, is he’s going through his rehab,” Rivera said. “And as he continues through that, they’ll give me updates as to where he is. We’ll see. He’s probably had a workout today or some sort of treatment; he’ll have one tomorrow, he’ll have one on Wednesday, and we’ll probably get an update by then.”
This story was originally published October 28, 2019 at 7:00 PM.
