Cam Newton has yet to have an introductory press conference with the New England Patriots, but he recently shed some light on the process that led him to his unexpected landing site.
Newton recently sat down with Odell Beckham Jr., Todd Gurley and former NFL catcher Victor Cruz for an extensive conversation at a West Hollywood restaurant for a series called “The Bigger Picture.”
The quartet divided him into several themes, from Black Lives Matter to COVID-19 to their situations as they entered the 2020 NFL season, with Gurley and Newton taking trips with new teams.
Newton Joining the Patriots is clearly the biggest football development here. When Cruz, who acted as the pseudo host of the event, asked Newton about his new outfit, Newton tells listeners that he will not leak.
“Are we being honest?” Newton asks. Everyone says yes. Beckham says, “I’m going to say they don’t believe in you, Cam. We talked about it … they don’t believe.” It is not exactly clear who the “they” Beckham refers to is.
And then Cam opened up to his initial impressions of landing with the Patriots, and there are some fascinating parts.
Newton’s long unemployment streak
Newton spoke about the nearly three months he had to wait before receiving a contract offer after the start of free agency in March, citing Future’s mixed tape “56 Nights” as his inspiration.
“I said, ‘Man, they are playing with me,’ and I had to count the days that I was unemployed,” Newton said. “It was 86 nights. Eighty-six nights. … that’s like three months. “
Newton watched as the older, less talented quarterbacks signed on before him, and led him to question what was happening.
Still, he admitted that for the past two injury-ridden seasons, “I will be the first person to tell you that, these past two years, I have not been shooting the best movie. That is honest. “
Cam Newton opened up a bit by joining the New England Patriots and what his motivations will be for the 2020 NFL season. (Photo by Kathryn Riley / Getty Images)
At the time the Patriots called Newton’s agent
Newton said he was working this offseason when one of his agents called to say that a team had expressed interest. It was New England
It seems to have surprised Newton initially.
“I said, ‘Wait, how are we doing? [Bill] Belichick is going to mesh? You know what I’m talking? Because it’s like … perception. “
Beckham then chimed in with his impression of how the future Hall of Fame coach and quarterback MVP will work together.
“Looking at you, and now to feel that demand and to go to Belichick, there is no ‘How is it going to work?'” He told Newton. “For me, all he wants to do is put you in a place to be successful. I’m happy to see him.”
‘The elephant in the room’
It was then that Newton changed the conversation a little. After all, there are some shoes big enough to fill as the Patriots quarterback.
“We have to talk about the elephant in the room,” he said, “it’s like … you know who you are [are] coming later. “
That obviously is Tom Brady. Arguably he has the best resume on the team of any quarterback in modern league history, all with the Patriots.
But Newton doesn’t seem intimidated by the challenge. And he’s challenging his new offensive coordinator.
“You are getting a dog. You’re also going to get one of these pesky dogs.
This is the kind of thing that Patriots fans should be eating, especially after such a tough and weird offseason.
One of Newton’s motivations: revenge
Newton is not just playing to revive his career and help keep New England among the elite teams. He is also clearly trying to send a message to the other 31 teams that chose not to pursue him.
“And I’m looking at the [Patriots’] schedule and I’m like, ‘Who are we playing at? That team happened to me … OK, that team happened to me, ” he said. “They could have come and caught me.”
Newton said his agent continued to give him bad news when certain teams called about the quarterback from the start in free agency before cooling his interest. Then the Patriots entered the picture late, signing Newton out for relative misery.
It’s also clear that his departure from the Panthers still hurts.
I knew He wasn’t supposed to be playing “.” Data-reactid = “61”> “A part of me remains because I gave [the] organize everything, “Newton said.” What I gave, I don’t think. Other people were willing to give. And there [were] times where i I knew He wasn’t supposed to be playing. “
Newton said he was allowed to choose his best route last season to recover, meeting with Panthers general manager Marty Hurney and then-head coach Ron Rivera. Newton told them that he felt it was better to go to the injured reserve, recover, and try to return before the end of the 2019 season.
At first, Newton said the Panthers made his health feel like a priority. But he also said things changed when the Panthers started winning. Carolina was 0-2 with Newton in QB to start last season, but then won four consecutive games with Kyle Allen starting in his place.
The atmosphere, Newton said, seemed to change. He said there were “foot soldiers” in the Panthers’ locker room last year that they were looking for Newton, and that they were bringing bad news.
“[They] He said, ‘Brother, I’m not going to lie to you, like … it’s bad. They [are] Really [expletive] in your name, ‘”Newton said.
He later added: “I’m like, ‘Brother, are you forgetting me?'” The Panthers released Newton in late March.
The whole conversation is here, with the Patriots-related things happening after the 34-minute mark:
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