Cam Newton has successful surgery on torn rotator cuff

Though offseason surgery to a torn rotator cuff may slow him down a tad, Cam Newton’s surgery on Thursday was a success and he should be good to go in 2017.

Waiting until the last minute to have surgery wasn’t ideal, but it was the reality on Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton’s torn right rotator cuff. He supposedly first suffered the injury in Week 14’s game against the San Diego Chargers. While he hoped it would improve on its own, the pain didn’t subside and Newton went under the knife on Thursday morning.

Fortunately for Newton and the Panthers, it seems that Newton’s surgery was a success and he should be ready to go by the start of Panthers training camp in late July. Doctors have stated in Newton’s upcoming rehabilitation that he won’t be able to throw for three months and wouldn’t so with the Panthers until training camp.

Newton has a powerful right arm, but a torn rotator cuff didn’t help his accuracy in 2016. After winning NFL MVP in 2015, Newton completed 52.9 percent of his passes in Carolina’s dismal 6-10 campaign. He was obviously playing through pain in his final four starts. The slight downtick in accuracy is understandable if he had to alter his motion to avoid pain.

Four months of rehab makes all the sense in the world for Newton. There really isn’t any need for him to be rushed back before the start of the upcoming season. That being said, Newton would miss time in being able to work with his receiving corps.

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Chemistry in the passing game will be crucial to the Panthers’ success next season. An improved running game will help more than anything, but Newton has to become a more precise passer into his late 20s. Missing some of those reps in OTAs and training camp will be tough, but missing Newton at any point of the regular season would be more painful for Carolina football.