For nearly the entirety of the last two decades, the New England Patriots have entered the first week of the regular season with Tom Brady as the expected starter. The 2020 edition of the Patriots, now without the six-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback, received criticism for not going after a quarterback in the draft or during the first few months of free agency.
Over three months into the new league year, Bill Belichick and the Patriots seem to have found a potential star quarterback for an extreme discount. Cam Newton agreed to a one-year deal with New England worth up to $7.5 million, per multiple reports.
The contract includes a $1.05 million base salary (the minimum for a veteran with Newton’s tenure in the NFL), with $550,000 guaranteed. The remaining $6.45 million is divided up between per-game roster bonuses ($700,000) and performance incentives ($5.75 million).
In the 1-year deal for #Patriots QB Cam Newton, the team guaranteed him just $550K — on a $1.05M total base. The definition of low-risk. The reward comes in $700k in per-game rosters bonuses and another $5.75M in incentives. The max is $7.5M in all.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 2, 2020
Chances he makes the roster: 90%
The Patriots currently have five quarterbacks on the roster: Newton, Jarrett Stidham, Brian Hoyer, J’Mar Smith, and Brian Lewerke. The two undrafted free agents (Smith and Lewerke) had a long way to go to make the roster. Now, they’re essentially practice squad quarterbacks, at best.
Hoyer and Stidham were set to battle it out for the starting job, and the loser of the competition would take the backup spot. Newton has shown more than either veteran quarterbacks in his time in the league. If he’s healthy, he should be able to win the job and be the starting quarterback for the Patriots this season.
His chance of making the team would be at 100% if he didn’t have some concerns stemming from his injuries to his foot and shoulder.
What it means for Newton
Heading into the 2020 season, Newton is in a very interesting situation. He’s a former MVP who’s performed well when talent is placed around him. With offensive weapons like Julian Edelman, N’Keal Harry, Mohamed Sanu, and James White on his side, he should be able to get comfortable quickly.
If Newton is on the roster for all 16 games, it’s likely he reaches his incentives. Having missed most of last season, Newton wasn’t able to put up great numbers. This means his incentive numbers would reset from “likely to be earned” to “not likely to be earned.”
“Not likely to be earned” incentives do not count against the salary cap. For example, the Patriots could give Newton an incentive for throwing for 3,000 yards (a feat that is common in today’s game). Because Newton didn’t reach 3,000 passing yards last year, the incentive is considered ‘not likely to be earned’ and, therefore, doesn’t count towards the cap.
So, while Newton’s deal may appear like he’s only receiving $1.05 million, he’ll probably see all $7.5 million if he stays healthy.
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