Want proof Cam Newton is adjusting well to his new team? The Patriots named the 31-year-old quarterback a team captain Thursday, despite the fact he joined New England in free agency just two months ago.
That label is a sign Newton has earned the respect of his new teammates, who voted Tom Brady's successor one of the club's eight captains.
According to wide receiver Julian Edelman -- who isn't a team captain despite being the Patriots' second-longest-tenured player -- Newton didn't waste any time asserting himself as a leader.
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“It says a lot,” Edelman told WEEI's "The Greg Hill Show" on Friday of Newton being named a captain. "He came in with an energy. He came in with a purpose and he came in as a natural leader.
"That's what you want to see at that position. It's one of those things where you’re excited for it because now we can get it going."
The Patriots also named Newton their starting QB over backups Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer, even if head coach Bill Belichick wouldn't confirm that news Friday.
New England Patriots
"We are not naming any starters at any positions, so any conversations that I have with the team will stay between me and the team," Belichick responded when asked if Newton is the Patriots' starter.
Newton certainly has carried himself like a QB1, though. The three-time Pro Bowler has brought a confidence and enthusiasm to Patriots practices that safety Devin McCourty noticed immediately.
“He brings juice to practice and definitely to the offense, whether it's talking trash to us (the defense), or celebrating each time he or one of the other guys on offense makes a play," McCourty told "The Greg Hill Show" on Friday. "I think he’s really brought a lot of juice to the offense (and) even our team just how he is as a person and his personality.
"It’s been great to have him in the locker room and we’re looking forward to going out there taking on different challenges and leaning on his leadership."
The Patriots leaned on Brady's leadership for much of the past two decades, but it appears Newton is up to the task of filling that void.