We should all be rooting for Cam Newton to prove the Panthers wrong
By John Buhler
The Carolina Panthers are looking to move on from Cam Newton. It’s a business, but we should all root for Newton to succeed on his new NFL team in 2020.
Don’t call it a comeback, call it The Cam-back, Part Deux.
The former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL MVP doesn’t look to be in the Carolina Panthers’ long-term plans any more. Cam Newton has one more year left on his Panthers contract, but the franchise has already signed former New Orleans Saints backup Teddy Bridgewater to a three-year contract. This can only signify Carolina plans to either trade or release Newton at some point.
Though an incredibly polarizing player during his time in Charlotte and his one brilliant year at Auburn, you have to feel for the guy. Newton had been the face of the Panthers franchise for the last nine seasons. He has brought the team greater stability at the quarterback position than anyone before him. However, he is coming off a major injury and the team is rebuilding.
So where is Cam going to land? If his foot is back to good, he is most certainly still a starter in this league. Teams like the Los Angeles Chargers, the New England Patriots and maybe even the Washington Redskins have interest.
The Chargers and Patriots are in need of a new franchise quarterback after Philip Rivers went to the Indianapolis Colts and Tom Brady signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Even though Washington drafted Dwayne Haskins last year, he’s unproven and new Redskins head coach Ron Rivera knows what he’ll be getting in Newton. They were together for nine years in Charlotte.
Los Angeles and New England still have seats left to be filled in free-agent quarterback musical chairs. Both franchises will likely draft a signal-caller in the first-round, as will quarterback desperate teams like the Cincinnati Bengals and the Miami Dolphins, two other potential destinations for the 2015 NFL MVP, albeit more unlikely ones.
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Regardless, Newton is only in his early 30s and still has the dynamic presence to lead a solid team to the postseason. If a team has a solid running back for him to hand the ball off to, a competent tight end and most importantly, a great defense, Newton can win big on his new NFL team. He was an institution in Carolina, but he won’t be part of the Panthers rebuild. Let’s root for the guy.