Should Cam Newton Still Be New England Patriots' QB?
Let us get this straight, the quarterback who was beaten out by Mac Jones is now criticizing NFL MVP candidates Brock Purdy and Dak Prescott?
Cam Newton, who took the first post-Tom Brady snap for the New England Patriots in 2020 but a year later lost the job to then-rookie Jones, these days hosts a podcast in which he dresses up like a member of the iconic funk band, Parliament. On his show this week, Cam offered the hottest - and weirdest - of takes on some of today's best quarterbacks: the 10-3 San Francisco 49ers' Purdy, Prescott of the 10-3 Dallas Cowboys, Tua Tagovailoa of the 9-4 Miami Dolphins and the 9-4 Detroit Lions' Jared Goff.
"These are game managers. They're not difference-makers," Newton said on his 4th & 1 show. "If we’re really going to call a spade a spade, there’s a difference between managers of the game and difference-makers of a game. That’s not to say they can’t win the MVP, but it just is what it is.”
In his day - circa 2015 - Newton was the baddest man on the planet. His size and skill made him often the best athlete on the field. Long before Jalen Hurts made headlines with the Philadelphia Eagles by going through piles at the line of scrimmage, Newton won an MVP with the Carolina Panthers by jumping over them.
Cam Newton produced 20 TDs for the Patriots in 2020. In 2023, the entire team has 19.
USA Today
In winning MVP, Newton also led the Panthers to a 15-1 record and the Super Bowl.
Cam had a better single season and peak than Dak, but Prescott has had a better career. No? In eight seasons he's gone 71-39 to Cam's 75-68-1 over 11 years. Dak also holds advantages in completion percentage (67-60), passing yards per game (258-218), touchdowns (194-193), interceptions (71-123) and passer rating (99-85). To be fair, Newton did rush for 5,628 yards and 75 touchdowns to Dak's 1,827 and 28.
At only 34, perhaps Newton is just upset he can't get a call to play in the league he once dominated. Nine players that age or older have started games this season: Russell Wilson, Matthew Stafford, Kirk Cousins, Ryan Tannehill, Tyrod Taylor, Joe Flacco, Andy Dalton, Brian Hoyer and Aaron Rodgers.
Considering some of the quarterbacks starting games these days - Bailey Zappe, Aiden O'Connell, Tommy Devito, Gardner Minshew, Jake Browning, Mitch Trubisky, Josh Dobbs, etc. - Cam might have a point that he's still more talented and able. But he should pick a fight with those guys and those teams, not two of the favorites to win MVP in Purdy and Prescott.
And come to think of it, Newton could've probably helped the 3-10 Pats this season. In his lone as starter in 2020, he rushed for 12 touchdowns and threw for eight more. That's 20 touchdowns, or one more than anemic New England has produced all year. So, really, how much worse could Newton be?
