Cam Newton Thread - Back to Carolina

[ericanadian]

At this point, Cam’s options were:

1) Sign with the Pats.
2) Wait until he can do a physical and hope that improves his market, though he’d likely be signing as a backup which would likely to depress his value next year.
3) Wait for an injury.

In a year like this getting into camp early seems like the best option he has to reestablish some value for next year. The fact that its a coach that has been openly respectful of him and a team that has proven they can win certainly makes that an even better option.

[Sriracha]

Proving your doubters wrong is not what is the main focus of any successful person I know. It's used as "bulletin board" material. Your legacy isn't about proving others wrong, it's about self belief, proving yourself right. The fundamental part of any success people have, is in their own self belief. Proving their doubters comes only out of that, not the other way round. There was 1 bidder, in the context of my statement. I specifically stated he wasn't playing to the highest bidder. Did you not read the entire thing? It's not about money for Cam, but it would have been if it could be, and still being in the position to succeed. He obviously would have taken more if he could get it, and felt he could succeed. Somebody with self belief wouldn't have resigned himself to the Pats offer, if he was offered 20 million by another team. I'm pretty sure Cam would have felt he could continue his Legacy there, over the Pats offer, in that case.

Obviously if you can choose more money vs less money you take more money. But what team would put him in a better position to succeed than the Pats: who have the least competition for the starting QB spot, a solid defense and a proven track record of winning?

D is good, no doubt. But that offense isn't. I mean, what if the Bucs had made an offer instead of going after Brady? That would be much more enticing as a QB who isn't afraid to sling it. Everybody is talking about the Bucs as a contender now. I personally don't think of the Pats as a real contender with Cam. But I'm sure he does. I'm curious if he had multiple offers, with different amounts of money, and not just the Pats, how he would have handled it, but we'll never know. My point was not that he was a sell out to the highest bidder, but that it's a convenient narrative to say he's going for the Pats for his legacy, but what if the Redskins had offered him the same deal, and nobody else? We just don't know. I think it's a good move for him, because he has a good coaching staff, and if he does well, can get a big time pay increase next year. I'm saying that he would have preferred more money, but that ultimately it's about being successful for him, not proving people wrong, or it should be. Obviously proving doubters wrong can motivate anybody. I just meant that isn't the main focus of this, or it shouldn't be. As you said, he's made a lot of money, and his only offer that we know of came from a very successful franchise, so he decided to take it. I think it was the right move.

Considering the Patriot's Vegas odds just went from middling team to AFC East favorites and 3rd most likely team to reach the Super Bowl (behind KC and BAL) I find it hard to believe that the Bucs would be a better destination for him to see success in 2020.

You're right that this is all a hypothetical, and that we'll never really know what might've happened given a different situation. I didn't really mean that he would've gone to the Patriots solely to prove his doubters wrong; more so that he has a massive chip on his shoulders and the Patriots gave him the best chance to prove that he's still Superman.

This was a win/win for both Cam and the Patriots

[FantasyFreak]

Obviously if you can choose more money vs less money you take more money. But what team would put him in a better position to succeed than the Pats: who have the least competition for the starting QB spot, a solid defense and a proven track record of winning?

D is good, no doubt. But that offense isn't. I mean, what if the Bucs had made an offer instead of going after Brady? That would be much more enticing as a QB who isn't afraid to sling it. Everybody is talking about the Bucs as a contender now. I personally don't think of the Pats as a real contender with Cam. But I'm sure he does. I'm curious if he had multiple offers, with different amounts of money, and not just the Pats, how he would have handled it, but we'll never know. My point was not that he was a sell out to the highest bidder, but that it's a convenient narrative to say he's going for the Pats for his legacy, but what if the Redskins had offered him the same deal, and nobody else? We just don't know. I think it's a good move for him, because he has a good coaching staff, and if he does well, can get a big time pay increase next year. I'm saying that he would have preferred more money, but that ultimately it's about being successful for him, not proving people wrong, or it should be. Obviously proving doubters wrong can motivate anybody. I just meant that isn't the main focus of this, or it shouldn't be. As you said, he's made a lot of money, and his only offer that we know of came from a very successful franchise, so he decided to take it. I think it was the right move.

Considering the Patriot's Vegas odds just went from middling team to AFC East favorites and 3rd most likely team to reach the Super Bowl (behind KC and BAL) I find it hard to believe that the Bucs would be a better destination for him to see success in 2020.

You're right that this is all a hypothetical, and that we'll never really know what might've happened given a different situation. I didn't really mean that he would've gone to the Patriots solely to prove his doubters wrong; more so that he has a massive chip on his shoulders and the Patriots gave him the best chance to prove that he's still Superman.

This was a win/win for both Cam and the Patriots

Yeah. I think we came to a better understanding here. All good, man.

[Sriracha]

Yeah. I think we came to a better understanding here. All good, man.

[Valhalla]

So...am I the only one here who thinks Stidham has a shot at amounting to starter material?

[Orenthal Shames]

So...am I the only one here who thinks Stidham has a shot at amounting to starter material?

As an Auburn fan, I've seen a ton of both. Stidham was a frustrating guy to watch in college.

I don't dismiss NE liking him as a potential project for the future, but if they believed he was their guy right now, there's no way they bring in Cam.

[Bronco Billy]

So...am I the only one here who thinks Stidham has a shot at amounting to starter material?

I don’t underestimate Belichick. Brady was a 6th round pick, and I saw plenty of him when he played in college. Never thought he’d ever do much in the NFL. Reminds me of Stidham’s situation more than a little. No one saw greatness in Brady at the draft, and that includes NE or they wouldn’t have waited so long to draft him.

Newton’s deal is so team friendly and makes him so painless to cut that I really don’t assign a whole lot of weight to it. I see it more as a break-glass-in-emergency type of situation. No way I’m counting out Stidham as the starter, and there’s a decent chance it’s his spot to lose right now. And honestly, this being Belichick and the Pats, I don’t see how anyone thinks they know with any degree of certainty how this will shake out.

[Valhalla]

So...am I the only one here who thinks Stidham has a shot at amounting to starter material?

As an Auburn fan, I've seen a ton of both. Stidham was a frustrating guy to watch in college.

I don't dismiss NE liking him as a potential project for the future, but if they believed he was their guy right now, there's no way they bring in Cam.

They brought in Cam for so dirt cheap it’s nearly a free look at him. He’s a painless cut, potential trade material if someone else’s qb goes down, and yes an absolute steal of a sign at that price if he’s back to mobile Cam. Even if they were confident in Stidham, why would they NOT sign Cam to such a dirt cheap contract?

[Valhalla]

So...am I the only one here who thinks Stidham has a shot at amounting to starter material?

I don’t underestimate Belichick. Brady was a 6th round pick, and I saw plenty of him when he played in college. Never thought he’d ever do much in the NFL. Reminds me of Stidham’s situation more than a little. No one saw greatness in Brady at the draft, and that includes NE or they wouldn’t have waited so long to draft him.

Newton’s deal is so team friendly and makes him so painless to cut that I really don’t assign a whole lot of weight to it. I see it more as a break-glass-in-emergency type of situation. No way I’m counting out Stidham as the starter, and there’s a decent chance it’s his spot to lose right now. And honestly, this being Belichick and the Pats, I don’t see how anyone thinks they know with any degree of certainty how this will shake out.

Yeah this is where I’m at too in thoughts. It would be fun to see Cam back to his old self and see what Bill does with him, so I’m not rooting against Cam, but I’m not just assuming it’s his job now.

[Bronco Billy]

Considering the Patriot's Vegas odds just went from middling team to AFC East favorites and 3rd most likely team to reach the Super Bowl (behind KC and BAL)

Vegas makes money in the sports books at least as much by reading public perception as it does by evaluating both sides of a proposition. Their ideal is to get as many suckers on the wrong side of a proposition as possible.

It’s valuable to use betting lines in helping to make judgments in sports, and thereby in things like FF. Just make as sure as possible you’re reading the intent of a line moving - especially when it moves significantly - properly.

[Orenthal Shames]

So...am I the only one here who thinks Stidham has a shot at amounting to starter material?

As an Auburn fan, I've seen a ton of both. Stidham was a frustrating guy to watch in college.

I don't dismiss NE liking him as a potential project for the future, but if they believed he was their guy right now, there's no way they bring in Cam.

Even if they were confident in Stidham, why would they NOT sign Cam to such a dirt cheap contract?

You don't bring that added pressure and QB controversy into the situation if you have your guy.

[Bronco Billy]

As an Auburn fan, I've seen a ton of both. Stidham was a frustrating guy to watch in college.

I don't dismiss NE liking him as a potential project for the future, but if they believed he was their guy right now, there's no way they bring in Cam.

Even if they were confident in Stidham, why would they NOT sign Cam to such a dirt cheap contract?

You don't bring that added pressure and QB controversy into the situation if you have your guy.

Says who? This isn’t Pop Warner football. This is big business. If Stidham can handle being one of 32 starting NFL QBs on the planet, do you thinking adding Newton is going to suddenly make him curl up in the corner and cry? Healthy competition and another vet presence ought to bring out the best in him. If it doesn’t then he doesn’t belong there in the first place.

[OhCruelestRanter]

There are some Simone Biles caliber mental gymnastics going on in this thread. Cam Newton's contract reflects his lack of leverage, not New England's views of Stidham. Either way, he's still getting paid more than Stidham, so I wouldn't use an argument that Newton's cheap contract means he can get cut.

Often the simplest explanation is the correct one: Cam Newton, the former MVP and the highest paid QB on New England's roster, will be the starter for the New England Patriots in 2020.

[Orenthal Shames]

Even if they were confident in Stidham, why would they NOT sign Cam to such a dirt cheap contract?

You don't bring that added pressure and QB controversy into the situation if you have your guy.

Says who? This isn’t Pop Warner football. This is big business. If Stidham can handle being one of 32 starting NFL QBs on the planet, do you thinking adding Newton is going to suddenly make him curl up in the corner and cry? Healthy competition and another vet presence ought to bring out the best in him. If it doesn’t then he doesn’t belong there in the first place.

Sports psychology wouldn't exist if it were this simple.

If it were, every team in the league would've been clamoring to add this cheap, "healthy" competition.

[Bronco Billy]

You don't bring that added pressure and QB controversy into the situation if you have your guy.

Says who? This isn’t Pop Warner football. This is big business. If Stidham can handle being one of 32 starting NFL QBs on the planet, do you thinking adding Newton is going to suddenly make him curl up in the corner and cry? Healthy competition and another vet presence ought to bring out the best in him. If it doesn’t then he doesn’t belong there in the first place.

Sports psychology wouldn't exist if it were this simple.

If it were, every team in the league would've been clamoring to add this cheap, "healthy" competition.

And I’d point to success rate over the past number of years and argue that NE probably understands how to handle their franchise better than almost every, if not every, team in the league.

Look at GB - they didn’t worry about Favre’s ego when they drafted Rodgers in the 1st round, and now they aren’t worried about Rodgers’ ego in doing the same thing with Love.

You do what you have to in order to establish your franchise guy in as small of a window as possible when it is time to turn over, and the current starting QB’s feelings be damned. That’s how you keep from being Cleveland or Chicago or Jacksonville.

Teams don’t invest in multiple potential starting QBs because they are short sighted. Look at how NE has reaped the benefits of sending potential starters to other teams over the years.

I’ll say it again - if a team’s starting QB’s ego is too fragile to handle some strong competition for his spot then they probably have invested in the wrong guy. You can’t have two strong vets with 5+ years in the stable because of the cap implications. But having a vet used to starting up against your potential rising young QB? That is an ideal situation IMO. Here’s your chance, you two. Let the best man win. And you’re starting to see this a lot more at the top college programs.