“Cam can’t play football anymore.”
Rodney Harrison had no problem launching that scud missile at Cam Newton last month on Tom Curran’s Patriots Talk Podcast. The former Patriot played with arguably the greatest quarterback of all time, Tom Brady, winning a pair of Super Bowls during his six seasons in New England. And as a terrific player in his own right who earned first-team All-Pro honors at safety with the Patriots and Chargers during his 15-year NFL career, Harrison’s informed opinion obviously carries some weight.
But was this candid assessment of the former NFL MVP fair? Did Harrison have all of the information needed to make a statement that left no wiggle room?
Harrison isn’t alone in his criticism of Newton’s 2020 campaign, of course. In an era where it’s never been easier to pass the football, Newton scuffled mightily this past season, throwing for just over 2,600 yards with more interceptions than touchdown passes over 15 starts. It wasn’t good enough — not at that position, not in this offense, not with what it came after.
Newton ranked 35th out of 35 qualified quarterbacks in passing yards per game (177.1), 28th in passer rating (82.9) and became just one of five qualified passers since the 1970 merger with a 65-plus completion percentage (65.8, 18th in NFL) and fewer than 180 passing yards per game, joining David Carr (2006), Kelly Holcomb (2005), Cody Carlson (1992) and the 1983 version of Ken Anderson. None of those four ever started 10-plus games in a single season again after achieving this ignominious feat. Is Newton headed down that same road? In early January, at the completion of the season, he was asked if he could see himself as a backup.
“I know out of 32 guys, I’m not the 32nd position rank in that position,” he said in a WEEI radio appearance. “So you have to also understand I’m 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 that if given the opportunity, there is nobody better than me. That’s how I will always feel.”
One thing Newton’s certain about is his desire to sign a new contract much earlier than he did last year, when Cam didn’t officially become a Patriot until the second week of July. In conversations with teammates and those inside the organization this offseason, many point to Newton being placed in an untenable situation, replacing Brady with no spring ramp-up to digest and understand a voluminous playbook, learn the players around him and, of course, do any of this in person for stretches because of COVID-19 restrictions around the league. Not to mention, Newton missed a start at Kansas City in early October after testing positive for the virus.
