Cam Newton Reaches Deal with New England
It has been a long wait, but Cam Newton will finally have a home in 2020. On Sunday Night, Newton struck a deal with the New England Patriots. Many people had the Patriots as the favorite to land Newton with the departure of QB Tom Brady, and they proved to be right.
Contract Details
As expected, Newton is going to be signing a one-year deal making the veterans minimum in 2020. With that being said, this deal is heavy on incentives. If Newton plays to his incentives, which have not been revealed, he can make up to $7.5 million in 2020. This deal is nothing less than a “prove it” deal for the former first overall pick. The incentives will likely factor around his health, which has been a revolving issue over the past few seasons.
QB Competition?
Even with this signing, Newton has some work to do to be the starter for the New England Patriots in 2020. The former Panther QB will join a QB room of Jarrett Stidham, Bria Hoyer, and Brian Lewerke. While the rookie Lewerke will most likely be a non-factor in the QB competition, and Brian Hoyer being a clear backup at this point, this is going to be a battle between Stidham and Newton. Before this signing, all signs were pointed towards Stidham being the starter in 2020. With Newton now in the mix, it is unclear what the Patriots plans are at the quarterback position, which has been as stable as they come for the past 20 seasons.
My Take
In my opinion, this is a good move for the Patriots. Even if Newton does not start and they do go with Stidham, having him as a backup is an extremely good security blanket in case Stidham does not play up to par. It made too much sense not to sign Newton, especially with the uncertainty of the other quarterbacks on the roster.
Prediction
My prediction is that Cam Newton will be the starting quarterback for the New England Patriots in 2020. Even if Stidham is talented enough to be a starting quarterback, this is still only a one-year deal for Newton. If he starts and finds his old self, you have a top tier quarterback that you may want to sign long-term. If he does not play well, you can always give the keys to Stidham if it gets to that point. I believe that not starting Newton would make this a waste of a deal with the fact that you would never get to see what he is going to bring to the table. 2020 is going to be a changing of the guard for the Pats, and there is a decent chance that Newton can help with that change.
Contract Details from cbssports.com
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