Cam Newton Continues Strange Drake Maye Beef Ahead of Pats QB's Super Bowl

There are tons of connections between Cam Newton and Drake Maye. Sadly, most of them are not good. Drake Maye grew up a Carolina Panthers fan, but he might not be anymore.

He attended Super Bowl 50, where Newton and the Panthers famously fell short of their first title. Now, 10 years later, Maye sits one win away from his own championship at the same venue that caused nightmares for him and other Panthers fans a decade ago.

Here's where it gets disappointing. Newton is a prominent media figure now, and that means he's always talking. Newton knows what he's talking about more often than not, but he also puts his foot in his mouth sometimes.

That happened earlier in the season when Newton claimed the red-hot Patriots were "fool's gold" because they hadn't played anyone (a common but weird criticism for a 14-win team now in the Super Bowl).

That got their attention, and both Maye and head coach Mike Vrabel hit back at the former Panthers QB. Maye indicated he wasn't aware of what show Newton was even on, a slick way of saying he doesn't pay any attention to the ex-player he once adored.

ESPN's First Take cast of Shae Cornette, Cam Newton and Ryan Clark share a laugh during the live show at Bethune-Cookman University during the show’s HBCU fall tour, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. | Nadia Zomorodian/News-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Newton did say Maye was "absolutely" playing great football when the Pats were 9-2, but he said the lack of high-end opponents means they might be "one-and-done." Three playoff wins later, Maye is in the Super Bowl.

That's a long-winded intro for a ton of context, but Newton hasn't backed down from his criticism, only shifted gears. The Patriots clearly aren't fool's gold, but Newton now has his sights set on Maye himself.

Cam Newton GOES OFF: Drake Maye is NOT Why the Patriots Made the Super Bowl

New Hot Take out now!

📺: https://t.co/iWlh1drGPH pic.twitter.com/7vV1vrSO6Q
— 4th&1 with Cam Newton (@4thand1show) January 28, 2026

Newton compared Maye's underwhelming playoff run against three of the top five defenses in the NFL this year (and yet to face another top-five unit in Seattle) to some unfortunate names like Brad Johnson or Rex Grossman.

The former MVP said Maye has benefitted from great defense en route to the Super Bowl. This much is at least true, as Maye's MVP form from the regular season has vanished so far.

Newton did say Maye is still not a "bad player," and said he did enough to win the games. He even said that Maye could go down as an all-time great if he wins a Super Bowl in his second year.

However, it's the framing of all of this and the simple fact that Newton feels the need to say it that feels wrong. Maye grew up adoring the Panthers and Newton, but the former NFL star needs to take each and every opportunity to point out a flaw with Maye?

When watching the full clip, Newton is very complimentary of Maye, but few will watch the whole video. The caption says enough, and it says something highly critical of the Patriots QB, and that's something that will only further this odd conflict between two titanic Charlotte football figures.

- Enjoy more free Panthers coverage with Carolina Panthers on SI -

Carolina Panthers urged to call Bears for huge blockbuster trade

Joe Brady’s Bills hire prompts ‘what if’ questions for Panthers

Shedeur Sanders’ Pro Bowl nod makes Derrick Brown’s snub even worse

The most impactful Carolina Panthers for the 2026 offseason