After losing on Thursday night to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Carolina Panthers became the first team to start their season 0-2. Carolina hasn’t just lost their first two games of the season, they both came at home. It’s hard enough to make the playoffs after an 0-2 start. That becomes almost impossible when you drop the first two at home. It’s time to pointing the finger at someone and only one man bears responsibility for this. It’s time for the Carolina Panthers to move on from Cam Newton. This window is over.
Even Cam Newton defenders have to admit that Newton isn’t the same guy anymore, or at least that he is an eroding player. Newton has lost his last 8 starts. Cam hasn’t scored a touchdown in four straight games. Newton has NEVER had back to back winning seasons. Cam has only eclipsed the 60 percent completion mark in three of his 8 career seasons. That’s not including 2019 where his completion percentage is at 56 to start the season.
Those are just facts. Here is the bottom line. Cam Newton is not an accurate thrower of the football. Never has been. When you add in shoulder surgery, ankle issues, and foot problems, Cam Newton is only a worse version of himself. A lot of Cam’s value came with his legs. You never know which guy is going to show up when it comes time to throw. He’s always been inconsistent in that area. Well, now the rushing is way down. If he can’t run, what kind of value does Newton really bring to the table?
Look, he’s clearly not okay physically. Cam Newton has 5 carries for -2 yards on the season. That’s not the superman we know. Newton also has 2 fumbles on the season already too. If Newton isn’t running, then what is he? An inaccurate quarterback? That’s not good enough to win football games. That’s evident for a guy that’s lost 8 straight starts.
Contractually, the Panthers have an opportunity to move on. Cam will enter the final season of his contract in 2020. If the Panthers were to trade or cut him, Carolina will leave just $2 million on the books. Is that better or worse than paying him $21 million to return as the starting quarterback? I think it’s time to move on.
At some point, the Panthers need to give Will Grier a look. He’s probably more of a backup but you never truly know what you have until you play him. There’s no upside to playing Newton at this point. Cam is hurt and you know what he is. That guy can’t carry a team anymore. Especially when the rushing attack isn’t there. Carolina invested a
