New England Patriots: Please stop feeling sorry for Cam Newton

The 2021 NFL season is in full swing. And through six games, it seems clear that the New England Patriots have found their quarterback of the future in Mac Jones.

But while most Patriots fans seem to be happy that Jones is their starting QB, many continue to feel sorry for Cam Newton, whom Jones beat out for the starting job.

I’m sorry, but this is absolutely ridiculous, and needs to stop.

Why New England Patriots fans need to stop feeling sorry for Cam Newton

The Patriots gave Newton a chance when no one else wanted him. Not once, but twice. If not for New England, Cam likely would’ve been out of the league in 2019.

But coach Bill Belichick, desperate for a “rebound relationship” following his infamous “divorce” with Tom Brady two years ago, brought Newton in.

And Newton proceeded to put together one of the worst quarterback seasons in Patriots history.

But despite Newton’s horrific play in 2020, Belichick inexplicably decided to bring him back to New England for 2021. Even after the Patriots drafted Jones 15th overall, Belichick made it clear that Newton was still the team’s starter, and he gave him all of the first team reps during training camp.

That was until Newton had to miss several of the most critical practices of camp. With Cam out, Jones stepped up, put together some of his best practices of the summer, and effectively took the starting job from Newton.

Now, if Newton had missed these practices because he had been injured, that would understandably be a cause for sympathy. But that wasn’t at all the case.

Newton had to miss critical practice time because he refused to get vaccinated against COVID-19. (Update: Newton has reportedly gotten vaccinated since his release.)

Yes, you read that right. Newton essentially gave up getting paid millions of dollars to play football because he didn’t want to get a couple of shots.

Aside from the negative societal impact of not getting vaccinated, by showing up to training camp without having received the vaccine, Newton put the Patriots at a competitive disadvantage. He increased the possibility of a COVID outbreak in the locker room, leading to the possibility of important players—including himself—being forced to miss games.

When you have an opportunity to give your team a competitive advantage by doing something as simple as walking into a pharmacy and getting a shot, you do it. It’s not complicated.

By failing to get vaccinated prior to the start of training camp, Cam Newton let the entire New England Patriots team down. So no, he doesn’t deserve our sympathy.

Also, if Cam were truly still capable of playing quarterback at an NFL level, wouldn’t another team have signed him by now?

As each week passes and Cam Newton sits at home (or pumps up the crowd at an Auburn game) while the likes of Geno Smith, Davis Mills, and Case Keenum line up under center on Sundays, it’s clear that the other 31 NFL GMs feel the same way that Bill Belichick does—that Cam Newton is not good enough to start for their team.

So while it’s great to see Cam finally get vaccinated, the fact remains that he is no longer good enough to be a starting quarterback in the NFL.

And that’s okay… I’m not good enough to be a starting quarterback in the NFL, either. But no one is feeling sorry for me, are they?

So please stop feeling sorry for Cam.