Did you wake up this morning believing Cam Newton would never again take a snap for the Patriots? Did you feel good about that? Then do not watch this.
Because the excellent, insightful, unflinchingly honest I AM ATHLETE interview with Newton conducted by Brandon Marshall, Fred Taylor and Chad Ochocinco will leave âNever Cammersâ realizing that, if thereâs a chance for Cam to wriggle his way back in, heâs gonna do it.
Patriots Talk Podcast:Â Would anything really change if Cam Newton returned to the Patriots? | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube
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Taylor, who was with the Patriots for two seasons starting in 2009, asked Newton at one point, âYouâre on a one-year deal, would you go back?â
Newtonâs reply? âHell, yes.â
One thing obvious about Newton throughout the interview: Newton is loyal as a Labrador to Bill Belichick, Josh McDaniels and the Patriots.
New England Patriots
Even as he acknowledges swimming upstream with cement shoes because of the learning curve and his own positive test for COVID.
Even as he points out he had no other options and had to take the Patriots cut-rate deal.
Even as he admits there were times he would have loved to fire back when being criticized during meetings or getting benched for performance, thereâs no whining in it.
My guess is that plenty of people in this news cycle will allege there is whining. That Newtonâs making excuses rather than explaining. Hereâs one thing to remember in the âexcuse vs. explanationâ debate. Is the person seeking absolution for what happened? Or is he explaining the factors that led to it and acknowledging his role in them?
Newton does the latter. And he passes on every chance given to rip on the Patriots roster even though there are chances for that, presented by Ocho and Marshall both.
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Newtonâs most revealing comment about a teammate was when he called second-year wide receiver NâKeal Harry âbattered.â The mental and physical toll the Patriots' âDo Your Job/No Days Offâ approach is exacting on the 2019 first-rounder really called into question the Patriots' pre-draft evaluations of whether heâd be able to deal with the demands and whether heâll be able to stick it out for four seasons.
But even in frankly describing Harry (and validating our analysis that his confidence was shattered and his intensity inconsistent), Newton made the case that heâd be happy to run it back with him.
"I'm getting tired of changing, bro," Newton said. "I'm at a point in my career -- I know way more than I knew last year. Now, you give me (a full offseason) -- not even that, a system with me. Like, Doughboy (N'Keal Harry) knows me, Jakobi (Meyers) knows me, Bud (Damiere Byrd) knows me, the young tight ends know me, the younger guys are going to come in.â
So Newton wants the Patriots. Will the Patriots want Newton? The withering response from Rodney Harrison recently when I even suggested Newton as a 2021 option indicates how little regard there is for Newtonâs football future.
But there are plenty of indications the Patriots are keeping the door cracked for Newton. Specifically? When ESPNâs Adam Schefter opined before the regular-season finale that the Patriots were moving on from Newton, it caused a huge stir for a few hours.
Belichick has a good relationship with Schefter. When he was presented with Schefterâs opinion after the game, Belichick said, âI donât think Adam said that.â
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Clearly, the two men spoke about how Schefterâs opinion was turned into news. Schefter kept clarifying in the following days. Belichick wonât make sure the record is set straight unless itâs important to him. Otherwise, he relishes the media getting stuff wrong.
Belichickâs loyalty to Newton then and his continual over-the-top salutes to Newtonâs leadership, work ethic and personality were evidence Belichick knew Newton was put in a no-win situation and did the best he could.
The way Belichick talked about Newton, youâd think Belichick had nothing but slappy, no-count, work-shirkers playing the spot for the past 20 years.
Is Newton the Patriots' No. 1 choice to return as their â21 starter? Obviously not or heâd be under contract by now. But if the team doesnât wind up with, say, a Mariota, Garoppolo, a Bridgewater or someone of that ilk and is left staring at the possibility of Andy Dalton or Alex Smith, the chance that Newton can convince the Patriots to bring him back looms.