Cam Newton ‘coming for everything 2020 took from me’

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Cam Newton ‘coming for everything 2020 took from me’

By Mark Inabinett | minabinett@al.com

8-10 minutes

Quarterback Cam Newton has stated his intentions for 2021. On his Instagram account the former Auburn All-American wrote: “Make no mistake about it. I’m coming for everything 2020 took from me. No excuses, no sobbing and definitely no blaming. I need to be better. The revolution has begun.”

Released by the Carolina Panthers after nine seasons, Newton played for the New England Patriots in 2020. Headed toward free agency again, Newton has goals for this offseason.

“I have a lot of ammunition in the barrel to get better this offseason,” Newton said in his final weekly appearance on “The Greg Hill Show” on WEEI-FM before leaving Boston, “and that is what I am going to focus on doing.”

Newton wants to lose 20 pounds “the healthy organic way” and get a contract signed without lingering after free agency opens on March 17.

Injuries affected Newton’s previous two seasons. A shoulder problem caused his play to deteriorate over the second half of the 2018 season and a foot injury limited Newton to two games in 2019.

The Panthers released Newton on March 24 – nearly a week after the start of free agency – with one year left on his contract. He didn’t sign with the Patriots until July 8.

“That’s definitely going to go into consideration,” Newton said. “I am not going to wait until the latter part of another (offseason) when I have the opportunity to do something or sign with someone. And I think I put myself at a disadvantage with that.”

But will there be more demand among NFL teams for Newton than existed last offseason?

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In 15 starts for the Patriots, Newton completed 242-of-368 passes for 2,657 yards with eight touchdowns and 10 interceptions and ran for 592 yards and 12 touchdowns on 137 carries.

New England ranked 27th among the NFL’s 32 teams in points and yards in 2020. The Patriots had a 7-8 record in the games started by Newton, and New England missed the playoffs for the first time since 2008 and had a losing record for the first time since 2000.

Meanwhile, the player that Newton replaced, Tom Brady went to his 10th Super Bowl and captured his seventh NFL championship in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ 31-9 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Feb. 7.

“I wasn’t just following him,” Newton said. “I was following a system that he had the luxury of being in for 20 years. Just imagine that. That’s just like as a student, you’re given six months to take a final exam, honestly, that took 20 years to prepare, but you only have, in essence, five weeks to prepare for it.”

Newton won the NFL Most Valuable Player Award in 2015, but the results of the 2020 season wouldn’t appear to have re-established him as a top-tier starting quarterback. But Newton isn’t preparing for backup duty in 2021.

“For me, when I look at the whole situation, if you’re asking me if I want to be a backup? Hell no,” Newton said, “because when I look at the other teams and I am looking at how players play and it’s been guys getting away with what I feel is murder for years because of subpar play. Do I have the right to say that with the year that I had this year? No. But I am going to be honest and say it because that is what I do. …

“I know out of 32 guys, I am not the 32nd position rank in that position, so you have to also understand I am a competitor first. I think the highest of myself first, as any person would and should. I know what my skill set is. I know what my talent is. I understand if given the opportunity, there is nobody better than me. That is how I will always feel.”

The 2021 offseason appears to have the potential to feature more quarterback movement than usual. The Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams already have swapped Matthew Stafford and Jared Goff. Philip Rivers retired after 17 NFL seasons, and Drew Brees is expected to join him.

Reports indicate Deshaun Watson wants the Houston Texans to trade him, Russell Wilson is unsatisfied with the Seattle Seahawks and the Philadelphia Eagles are shopping Carson Wentz. Free-agent QBs joining Newton will include Jacoby Brissett, Andy Dalton, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tyrod Taylor, Mitchell Trubisky and Jameis Winston. And mock drafts are showing quarterbacks Justin Fields of Ohio State, Mac Jones of Alabama, Trey Lance of North Dakota State, Trevor Lawrence of Clemson and Zach Wilson of BYU going in the top half of the first round.

The number of moving parts in the quarterback market hasn’t prevented NFL media outlets from sizing up potential landing spots for Newton.

Among the teams that will be in the market for a quarterback will be the one Newton is leaving. Would the Patriots consider bringing back Newton for a second season?

Newton said it would be “remarkable” if New England brought him back. In his final press conference after the season ended, Patriots coach Bill Belichick said he didn’t have “a timeframe” on a quarterback decision.

“We’ll just look at everything in the offseason,” Belichick said. “We’ll take a full evaluation of all the things that we do and have done and look forward, and I’m sure, as we do every year, we’ll want to modify some things. Again, we’ve learned a lot this year.”

Newton has played for only one other NFL head coach – Ron Rivera, now leading the Washington Football Team. Washington made the playoffs even though it started four quarterbacks. Only one had a winning record. Alex Smith won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award as Washington went 5-1 in his starts. Smith overcame a spiral compound fracture of the tibia and fibula in his right leg in 2018 to play again, but he will be turn 37 in May and ran into injury issues down the stretch in 2020.

Rivera already has been asked about a reunion with Newton in 2021.

“We’re exploring all of our options,” Rivera said. “Nothing is off the table. … As we go through this, we’re going to do what we believe is best for us.”

Newton plans to make a comeback of his own in 2021, using the offseason as a foundation.

“I’m always the one to find some type of positive in the process,” Newton said. “My one positive from it all, that was I felt was everything for me, was I finished the season healthy. I know all reports going into this year was, ‘Is he healthy? Is he this? Is he that?’ And my body feels like I wanted it to feel, as I hoped it would feel from the shoulder, from my foot, and even a stint from the oblique. That’s a success in my book.”

Newton said it has been years since he entered an offseason healthy, allowing him to undertake a full range of work.

“I have to, obviously, work on my mechanics,” Newton said. “I have to, obviously, throw the football sooner rather than the latter part of last year. Those things, I’m going to be focused on as we get geared up for offseason.”

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.

[jmcrosson 203]

Context matters - Cam has been throwing to absolute jobbers for the past 6 years. His best receiver in that timeframe has been Christian McCaffrey - a tailback. His best receiver ever was a past-his-prime Steve Smith. I would love to see what he could do with actual talent in the receiving corp.

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32 minutes ago, jmcrosson said:

Context matters - Cam has been throwing to absolute jobbers for the past 6 years. His best receiver in that timeframe has been Christian McCaffrey - a tailback. His best receiver ever was a past-his-prime Steve Smith. I would love to see what he could do with actual talent in the receiving corp.

he needs to get a superbowl ring. i have his auto rookie card with a bit of game used jersey. one of my favorite cards. i collect auburn player autograph cards i picked up jason cambell and aromashadu cards yesterday on ebay. both were less than ten bucks total.