Patriots opinion: Bill Belichick, Cam Newton budding romance needs to end

A motivated Cam Newton joining Bill Belichick the New England Patriots prior to the 2020 NFL season was supposed to be a wrath like the NFL has not seen before.

At least, that was what Patriots fans were hoping to see after Tom Brady took his talents and Rob Gronkowski to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

What we got instead was a 7-9 season with a quarterback who depended more on his feet than his arm.  What we got instead was a player who throw more interceptions than he did touchdowns.  What we got instead was a quarterback who made mistakes during key moments.

In fairness to Newton, he held no excuses although he had plenty.

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No extended training camp, no weapons and dealing with Covid-19 seemed to doom the 6-foot-5 former NFL MVP following Week 3 of the NFL season.

Does Cam Newton want another run as the New England Patriots quarterback?

Is Superman motivated more than ever to atone for his first and return to the New England Patriots?

Obviously, the answer is yes, a “hell yes” in the words to Newton, wo on his “I AM ATHLETE” podcast said he’s tired of changing and would welcome a return to the Patriots.  He also praised Belichick in the process.

"“He dope as s—.  He dope as s—.” Newton said, as transcribed by Boston.com.  “Like, he is a cool dude.  He understands the game.  He’s a historian of the game.  Just for you to sit and chat with him.  It’s like, ‘Damn.’  He’s going back and he’s got film teaching the game.”"

Well, that’s cool Cam, but Belichick is also a coach who puts the team before individual players, at least that has always been his mantra.  Hey, that is why Brady is down in Tampa Bay still hoisting Lombardi Trophies…and throwing them.

Bill Belichick leaning towards Cam Newton in 2021?

While Belichick has praised Cam Newton the football player despite the underwhelming statistics, there is no way he can or should bring him back unless there are no other options.

Unless the New England Patriots find a way to draft a Justin Fields or Trey Lance, even a Mac Jones, Newton should not be an option to start the 2021 NFL season at quarterback…not with Deshaun Watson available, not with other possibilities like Jimmy Garoppolo and Marcus Mariota out there.  Heck, even Ryan Fitzpatrick would be an upgrade over this version of Newton.

What the Patriots need, other than offensive weapons, is a quarterback who can push the ball down the field consistently with his arm.

Sure, running Cam Newton was exciting for a minute there.  But it got old really fast once opposing defenses just geared in on stopping Mr. Newton.

But, unlike his twenty seasons with Tom Brady, Belichick continues to praise Newton.  A recent report that the Patriots coach is raving about Newton is either just hogwash put out there or the coaches attempt to build up a player hitting free agency in hopes another team takes a chance, so he doesn’t have to.

As a Patriots fan, watching the team lose game after game at an empty Gillette Stadium was not pleasing.  Blame the lack of weapons all you want, but the simple eye test was a telling tale of an offense that had no chance once they fell behind in games, and yes that was mostly due to the style and limitations of Newton under center.

In summary, change is needed, and it begins at the quarterback position.  Bill Belichick and Cam Newton can romance each other all they want…off the field.  But this love affair simply cannot extend into the 2021 NFL season.  You hear that Belichick?