Former Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton is about to be officially off the market.
According to Adam Schefter and Chris Mortensen Sunday evening Newton has now come to terms on a one-year contract with the New England Patriots. According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, that one-year contract can be worth up to $7.5 million as it includes several incentives.
Newton, who was released by the Panthers back on March 24, will join a Patriots quarterback room that currently includes Jarrett Stidham, Brian Hoyer and rookies Brian Lewerke and J’Mar Smith. He had been with the Panthers since being selected first overall by them in the 2011 NFL Draft out of Auburn.
Newton missed 14 games last season with a Lisfranc injury that ultimately required surgery. Newton, who turned 31 years of age in May, as named the NFL MVP in 2015. For his career, Newton has thrown for 29041 yards and 182 touchdowns in addition to throwing 108 interceptions. He is 68-55-1 as an NFL starter and has rushed for 4,806 yards and another 58 touchdowns since entering the NFL with the Panthers.
The Patriots signing of Newton is a sign that the team isn’t overly confident in Stidham, who was drafted in the fourth-round last year out of Auburn. The Patriots also brought back Hoyer, a veteran backup, several weeks ago.
It will now be interesting to see if Newton can stick with the Patriots the remainder of the summer and ultimately become the team’s Week 1 starter. The Patriots have big shoes to fill at the quarterback in 2020 with longtimer Tom Brady signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a free agent earlier in the offseason.
The Pittsburgh Steelers don’t play the Patriots during the 2020 season and that’s the first time that’s happened since the 2014 season. The only way the Steelers will play the Patriots during the 2020 season is if the two teams meet in the playoffs.
