Why doesn’t Cam Newton have a new job, and what comes next for former Panthers QB?
Where will Cam Newton end up this season and why doesn’t he have a job already?
Welcome back to another edition of our sports debates, where two Charlotte Observer writers debate a current sports topic. Today, we return to the issue of Newton, the former star Carolina Panthers quarterback.
The Panthers released Newton March 24, which is a nice way of saying they fired him. Two months later, he still doesn’t have an NFL job.
To discuss all things Cam, we will start with Observer sports columnist Scott Fowler, who will debate Panthers beat writer Alaina Getzenberg.
Fowler: OK, Alaina, let’s start with the basics. How is it that Cam Newton doesn’t have a job yet and quarterbacks like Andy Dalton, Jameis Winston and Joe Flacco — three other NFL veterans with their own issues — already do?
There are at least three factors it seems to me in his current unemployment — the money, the hesitance Newton has to feel accepting a backup job for backup money when he was an alpha male starter for nine years and Newton’s checkered injury history. Which one of those three is most important, and is there a fourth factor I’m not thinking of?
Getzenberg: I think one other thing has emerged or been perceived as an issue is his personality or locker room presence, but to me that’s further down on the list of reasons he is currently a free agent. There’s no denying that Newton’s teammates love what he brings to the table.
I think the most important factor is his health, especially with the shoulder issues he has had in the past couple years. Teams have not been able to see him work out in person because of the restrictions put in place due to COVID-19. The Jets signing Flacco last week shows that teams are willing to sign players with recent significant injuries — he’s currently recovering from a neck injury — but he also has previous experience as a backup.
It’s interesting to think what would have happened if the Panthers — who are going with Teddy Bridgewater under center to begin 2020 — had decided to release Newton sooner. I have mixed feelings, because Carolina obviously would have preferred to get something in return for him, but free agency always moves quickly. Do you think it hurt his ability to find a new team?
Fowler: Yes, I do think it hurt him. Greg Olsen and the Panthers parted ways on Jan. 30. The Panthers didn’t release Newton until 54 days later. It stands to reason that a lot more teams solidified their QB plans in that 54-day period. With that said, though, I do think his injuries and the way teams haven’t been able to get him in with their own doctors for their own physical has been the biggest roadblock. His Lisfranc foot injury — the one that kept him out for 14 consecutive games in 2019 — is also huge to a quarterback who always has differentiated himself with his legs. Will he ever be able to run effectively again?
I know we agree that Newton won’t sit out the entire 2020 season. So give me two to three teams you think are most likely for Newton to sign with sometime in 2020.
Getzenberg: The New England Patriots still make sense to me purely on paper, but they’ve shown little interest in bringing Newton in. I’d keep them among the top candidates to bring him in midseason still. I think Washington also could be a fit because of head coach Ron Rivera’s familiarity with Newton. They have quarterbacks Dwayne Haskins, Kyle Allen and Alex Smith already, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they take a gamble on Newton if he remains unsigned. His only options at the moment are likely in a backup role.
Any teams that you have an eye on?
Fowler: I like New England the most, but I think at this point you could almost use a dartboard to try to predict Newton’s new team. I believe it will be the first team that gets its top guy hurt, which means Newton may be in limbo for several more months. Not only are all the starting jobs filled now, but just about all the No. 2 jobs are, too.
The best-laid plans go out the window, though, when these teams finally get to whatever the preseason looks like — or when their No. 1 guy has a freak injury and breaks his wrist. Something like that always happens — it did to Newton himself in the preseason last year. But it may take until close to Week 1 of the regular season for someone else’s injury to open a door for Newton.
And Newton is going to have to do his part by accepting peanuts compared to what he’s used to making — no one is going to sign him for $10 million a year in 2020. He’s got to take a short-term “prove it” contract, showcase the joy he played with as a Panther and make everyone a believer again.
Now let’s look at a calendar, Alaina. Tell me the exact date you believe Newton will reenter the league and the circumstances by which it happens. I’ll choose a date, too. The loser has to go find a game from the Panthers’ “Jimmy Clausen Season” of 2010 and rewatch the whole thing.
Getzenberg: Oh gosh, I really better get this right then.
But in all seriousness, this date feels like a shot in the dark due to the unknown nature of the NFL schedule due to COVID-19. I feel like it is most likely he ends up signing with a team during training camp or in the first two months of the season. For the sake of this exercise, I’ll go with Aug. 18. There will be a potential for more injuries due to the reduced practice time this offseason.
Fowler: I’m going to go even later than that, given the bubble wrap everyone is going to try to encase their quarterbacks in as football slowly returns. Give me Sept. 3 — just before the regular season. Somebody will panic and hand Newton a one-year, incentive-laden contract on that date.
This story was originally published May 28, 2020 at 2:00 AM.
