Brandon Jackson

It shouldn’t have taken this long.

A former MVP that took his team to the super bowl. A quarterback who is only 31 years old. A quarterback who’s best receiver over the past few years has been a running back. A player who has been a part of successful teams. A person who has done nothing but great and positive things in his community. This is what Cam Newton is.

And it took over three months since the start of free agency for a team to sign him.

Apparently, only two teams talked to him at all, according to Adam Schefter. The Patriots who signed him, and the Browns, who talked to him early in free agency but nothing came of it. I know not every team needs a new qb these days, but there are more than just these two. The Jaguars, Bears, and Broncos could have at least picked up the phone. The Chargers just drafted Justin Herbert, but he may not be ready day one.

It’s a shame that a QUARTERBACK with the resume Cam has had to wait this long to land on a team.

Most of the arguments against me will be, “Cam is washed because he’s hurt.” Now I will acknowledge that it is very possible that Cam isn’t a good player any more because of the injuries he has sustained, but it is very unlikely.

It is true that the last 8 games we have seen Cam participate in he has looked AWFUL. Truly not a good QB at all. But I have a lingering suspicion that the reason he was so bad is because he actually played through those injuries we talked about. He was playing through the two worst injuries you can have at the quarterback position. He had an injured throwing shoulder, and an injured plant foot.

Imagine Clayton Kershaw pitching with an injured elbow, recovering, and then pitching on a broken leg. And then also imagine people saying that he’s not good anymore after this happened. It doesn’t make any sense.

In the 2018 season before he was injured, Cam was playing the best football of his career, throwing the ball with more accuracy than ever before, while also leading his team to a 6-2 record. For him to barely be getting an opportunity to show that he is healthy again does not compute in my mind. Especially when we see other quarterbacks get opportunity after opportunity when they have proved that they are bad even when completely healthy. (Looking at you Joe Flacco.)

But alas, here we are. Cam is a New England Patriot. How will he do? Well considering Bill Belichick is the greatest coach of all time, I would have to guess that at the very least, he’ll be put in the best possible position to succeed. Belichick has famously always adapted his team to the strengths of the talent he has. (Why every coach doesn’t try to do that is a different story.) When Brady was young, Belichick leaned on the defense to win. When the Pats had Randy Moss, they threw the ball enough to set records. As Brady aged, they became dependent on their fantastic pass catching RB in James White, and great slot WR Julian Edelman. And last year they went back to leaning on the defense to win.

Given the history, one would think Cam would be positioned in the best way possible for his skill set. The Patriots have a better offensive line than what he left in Carolina. And Julian Edelman is the best receiver he’s played with since Steve Smith. I know Edelman can separate, so I expect to see a lot of receptions this year for No. 11.

This is the perfect landing spot for Cam. It is an organization that is committed to winning, has a head coach he can trust and believe in, and a division that is very winnable. The Dolphins and the Jets should still be an easy four wins despite their improvements in the off-season. The Bills look to be a real contender for the division, so I will give New England a split in the season series. So that’s five wins at least you should be able to get off the bat. If you go 5-5 the rest of the way you’re in the playoffs, and if you go 7-3 you’re probably the 1 seed.

Cam has a perfect opportunity this season in New England to show that he is still one of the best players in the NFL, and I can’t wait to see him do it.