CHARLOTTE, NC – DECEMBER 17: Cam Newton #1 of the Carolina Panthers looks on against the New Orleans Saints in the third quarter during their game at Bank of America Stadium on December 17, 2018 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
By Craig Shemon Don’t be surprised if you don’t see Cam Newton play football for a while… a long while! Quarterbacks Newton and Andrew Luck suffered serious shoulder injuries at roughly the same time. While Newton made it back on the field, Luck disappeared for over 600 days. Now flip the script as Luck played the best football of his career this past season while Newton
looked broken. The Panthers lost seven of their final eight games and finished 2018 at 7-9. Newton’s shoulder is clearly hurt and the Panthers must decide if they will shut him down for the 2019 season. That creates additional questions:
Will they rest him during the offseason and take the risk of his pain coming back to start the season or do they operate on the shoulder and write off the entire 2019 season while Newton goes through a lengthy rehab? Neither option is promising for the Panthers.
Panthers new owner David Tepper admitted he is trying to keep his options open as much as he can. Reading between the lines, Tepper is already envisioning a year without Newton. Or a year with Taylor Heinicke. Stay tuned!
