Tag: Cam Newton contract

A full breakdown of Cam Newton’s new contract with the Patriots

Cam Newton’s contract broken down by incentive.

Cam Newton is ready to take on the challenge of being the quarterback to succeed Tom Brady in New England. It’s a task that not many people would be willing to take head-on. However, it’s different for Newton.

As fans saw with the Patriots’ official announcement of the signing on social media, the quarterback is “hungrier than ever.” And, he’ll need to be if he wants to succeed in an organization that’s become so accustomed to winning.

Now, over a week after the reported signing, and after a lot of speculation about what the exact terms of Newton’s one-year deal would be, a breakdown of the contract has been shared by ESPN’s Field Yates.

Newton will make $1.05 million just for being on the 53-man roster for all 16 weeks, and he’ll make an additional $700,000 if he’s on the active 46-man roster for all 16 games.

On top of that, the quarterback has chances to earn bonuses based on being on the field, broken-down in the playing-time incentives. They are tiered, so the more Newton is on the field, the more he’ll make (up to $3.75 million if the team makes the playoffs, and he’s played 90% of the snaps).

If Newton stays healthy and plays up to his ability, those are all obtainable.

The tougher incentives come in the form of the Pro Bowl, All-Pro, and playoff win bonuses. Getting all three would earn him an extra $2 million, but it will be extremely difficult to earn those honors and win playoff games.

Compared to the assumptions that were made about what the incentives could be, these seem to be a bit more challenging for Newton to earn. After the performance that the Patriots put up in the postseason last year, confidence hasn’t been instilled just yet in this iteration of the team.

And, only two quarterbacks will be named to the All-Pro teams. As much as fans and the team may believe in Newton’s ability, to say that he’ll be one of the two best quarterbacks in the league this season is a long shot.

By the end of this contract, Newton will probably earn a fair amount of the incentives, but he’ll have to put up a historic year to collect all of them.

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The Ravens signing Cam Newton makes no sense but one oddsmaker has Baltimore among the favorite landing spots

Cam Newton signing with the Baltimore Ravens makes no sense but that isn’t stopping one oddsmaker from giving them the sixth-best odds.

One of the travesties this offseason is former Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton being out of a job. With a new coaching staff in Carolina and Newton having a few down seasons, the pair parting this offseason was inevitable. But with the 2020 regular season quickly approaching, many are wondering where the 2015 NFL MVP will end up this year. For at least one oddsmaker, the Baltimore Ravens are among the favorites.

According to DraftKings Sportsbook, Baltimore has the sixth-best odds of signing Newton. Though the Ravens have the mobile Lamar Jackson at quarterback, seemingly making Baltimore an ideal fit, the idea doesn’t make much sense if you think about it for too long.

First and foremost is the financial aspect. At this point in the offseason, Newton is going to be forced into a backup job if he signs anywhere, barring a sudden injury freeing up a starting spot. Though Newton is open to the idea, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, quarterback is the most expensive position in the league. Even Andy Dalton, who was in a similar position as Newton this offseason and signed a one-year deal with the Dallas Cowboys, is on the books for $3 million in 2020.

The Ravens have $10.02 million in available salary-cap space, according to Over The Cap. But with a few more draft picks to sign and more depth needed at far shallower positions, Baltimore is effectively cash strapped right now. Giving a fifth quarterback $3 million for a single year would simply be a waste of money unless the Ravens were planning on cutting or trading Robert Griffin III while having no confidence in Trace McSorley to be Jackson’s backup. Suddenly and completely blowing up the depth chart shortly before training camp isn’t exactly the type of move Baltimore makes, and while it’s certainly possible, it’s pretty far from plausible.

But for the sake of the argument, let’s assume the Ravens pick up a real-life monopoly card and find themselves with an extra $3 million from the couch cushions and in the mood to sign yet another backup quarterback. In that far-fetched scenario, why would Baltimore want to sign a guy coming off yet another surgery (foot) at a time when getting a physical is far tougher? Why would the Ravens want a backup quarterback who has had four surgeries in the span of six years, including two shoulder surgeries and a foot surgery just since 2017?

The case can be made Newton is finally healthy after all those surgeries, and that in a backup role he’ll be far less likely to sustain another injury. But it would be a pretty large risk regardless and one that makes even less sense with two established and healthy backups already on the roster in Griffin and McSorley.

Furthermore, why would Newton want to join the Ravens? His best chance at becoming a franchise quarterback again is to be on a team with questionable quarterback play and even more questionable depth. Unless Baltimore would guarantee him the No. 2 spot and there’s an injury to Jackson on top of that, Newton would very likely never see the field in 2020. That’s not a great recipe for any player to show they can handle the rigors of a full season and can still play at a high level, much less at a position that would command top dollar if signed to be a starter elsewhere.

I still believe Newton can be one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL if he has a little more protection and can stay healthy. But why would either the Ravens or Newton go through such a prolonged and convoluted process to put him in a spot to have a chance to prove himself when so many other teams make more sense. The Washington Redskins, Buffalo Bills, Arizona Cardinals, New England Patriots, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are all better scenarios for Newton than Baltimore.

This idea has all the trappings of someone blindly pairing two things that sorta fit together. You can practically hear someone reasoning to themselves, “Newton can run and the Ravens like to run their quarterback” and thinking it’s a brilliant idea all without putting another second of thought into it. That’s not to say it can’t happen because after this many years covering the NFL, I’ve learned to not make guarantees. But the idea of Baltimore signing Newton is as bad of a bet as you’ll see this season.

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Report: Panthers expected to release Cam Newton today

The move saves the team $19.1 million in cap room and adds another $2 million to the dead money total.

According to a report by Adam Schefter at ESPN, the Panthers are expected to release quarterback Cam Newton today.

While that headline may come as a shock, we knew this was a possibility when the team tanked his trade value by publicly questioning his health and then hurt their leverage by making it clear they were moving on with Teddy Bridgewater. There were reports that the Bears were in contact about a potential Newton trade. However, they decided to send the Jaguars a fourth-round pick for Nick Foles instead.

And so Newton – a former Heisman-winner, No. 1 overall draft pick and league MVP will become a free agent. The move saves the Panthers $19.1 million in cap room and adds another $2 million to the dead money total.

As for what comes next for Cam, there are a few QB-needy teams who might be interested.

The Redskins are one possibility. Ron Rivera coached Newton for the last nine years and probably believes he’s an improvement over 2019 first-round pick Dwayne Haskins. Signing Newton would free Washington up to use their No. 2 pick this year on a non-QB like Chase Young. They might also choose to trade down and start filling the considerable number of roster holes they have.

The Chargers are another good fit. Tyrod Taylor is their projected starter right now after Philip Rivers signed with the Colts. As long as Newton is healthy, he qualifies as a serious upgrade over Taylor.

Our gut feeling though is that Newton will sign with the Patriots. Bill Belichick is on record expressing his admiration for Newton’s abilities and he needs a new starter now that Tom Brady has signed with Tampa Bay.

Wherever he goes, we wish Cam the best and hope some day this rift will be repaired and he’ll retire as a Panther.

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Cam Newton on Instagram: ‘All I want is a little commitment’

This morning, Ian Rapoport at NFL Network reported that the Panthers are moving forward with Cam Newton as their starting quarterback.

This morning, Ian Rapoport at NFL Network reported that the Panthers are moving forward with Cam Newton as their starting quarterback.

Newton is entering the last year of his contract and there has been a ton of speculation about him potentially being traded this offseason. While Rapoport’s report is reassuring, we still haven’t heard any kind of public commitment from the front office.

Head coach Matt Rhule is scheduled to speak with the media in about half an hour at the NFL Scouting Combine, so perhaps we’ll learn something then. In the meantime, there’s more.

In a post Newton shared on his personal Instagram account, an emotional Cam was filmed at the gym saying: “I’m so comfortable with being uncomfortable. . .  All I want is a little commitment. And you can’t give me that?” Newton then repeated the question, followed by an F-bomb to end the video.

Before we all lose our minds, we don’t know exactly what Newton is talking about, here.

It’s possible he’s alluding to a personal matter not related to his contract. However, it would make sense if he’s feeling anxious about his situation.

Newton may not want to play this year without an extension, but it’s probably in the team’s best interest to let him start again in 2020 and then reevaluate depending on how he performs and if he stays healthy.

On the other hand, Newton has said he wants to stay in Charlotte and the thought of leaving has never entered his mind. He also told the media his meetings with Rhule, team owner David Tepper and general manager Marty Hurney left him feeling inspired and he’s eager to prove himself again.

So, what’s going on?

There’s no way to know for sure unless Newton explicitly spells it out for us. Maybe Rhule’s press conference will be enlightening.

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Cam Newton on if he’s sure he’ll return to the Panthers: ‘Absolutely’

Newton has one year remaining on his contract.

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton just dropped a bomb shell at radio row in Miami for Super Bowl LIV.

In an appearance with CBS Sports, Newton was asked if he’s sure he will return to the Panthers. He answered with a double “absolutely” and said he left his conversation with team owner David Tepper, general manager Marty Hurney and new head coach Matt Rhule feeling inspired.

Newton also said he feels he has a lot to prove. Watch.

We had begun to worry about the potential of Newton leaving given what looks like a major rebuild underway, so this comes as a pleasant surprise.

Newton has one year remaining on his contract. When he was healthy in the first half of the 2018 season, he looked every bit as potent as he’s ever been.  It will be fascinating to see what the team’s bright young offensive coordinator Joe Brady gets out of the former league MVP.

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