COVID-19 Stalls Cam Newton’s Next Opportunity

The former Panthers QB will have to be patient to sign with his new team

The days continue to pass as the once face of the Panthers franchise, Cam Newton, is without a job. 

Teams such as the Dolphins, Bears, Redskins, Patriots, Chargers, Broncos and others were all at one point thought to be in the mix to land Newton. Now, it seems like there is absolutely zero market for him. 

The Dolphins will likely draft Tua Tagovailoa, the Bears traded for Nick Foles, the Redskins traded for Newton’s backup - Kyle Allen, the Patriots signed Brian Hoyer, the Chargers are content with Tyrod Taylor and the Broncos have settled on Drew Lock as their future. 

Of the aforementioned teams, the Patriots still seem like the most likely destination for Newton. Brian Hoyer has been a career long backup and spot starter, whereas the other quarterback on their roster, Jarrett Stidham, is not the guy that will continue to win you games.

It’s hard to believe that Bill Belichick and the Patriots will just completely tear everything down and rebuild just because Tom Brady left. They still have several pieces on their roster to be a playoff contender, given they have the right quarterback. 

If New England decides to stick with Hoyer and Stidham, that gives the notion that they are willing to go through a small rebuild and potentially draft Clemson quarterback, Trevor Lawrence in next year's draft.

For Newton, the only problem that continues to get in the way is that he is unable to prove that he is healthy and do private workouts for teams due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is why you have seen him make several posts on Instagram of him throwing, lifting, running, etc. to show that he is back to full strength. 

Unfortunately for Newton, he could be without a job until the U.S. is on the down side of the pandemic. When will that happen? No one knows. Other countries were seeing a decrease after roughly a month or so, whereas the United States continues to see an increase heading into month two. Honestly, it could be several months before he signs somewhere, especially if the start of the NFL season is delayed or even canceled. 

A lot of this could have been avoided earlier this offseason had the Panthers released or traded Newton months ago. Now there’s a real possibility that he could be unsigned heading into dog days of the summer. 

Where do you think Cam will eventually land? And how long do you think it will take before he is signed? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below! 

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