The Cam Newton reunion tour stopped on Sunday.
Panthers QB had a really bad day against the Dolphins, throwing two interceptions and knocking out the 5.8-stat laner in his team’s 33-10 loss.
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However, Newton didn’t get a chance to finish the game. Instead, the backup QB PJ Walker was completed for the Panthers. He was entering his first drive of the fourth quarter in Carolina as Newton watched from the sidelines.
Here’s what happened to Newton:
Why is the Panthers chair Cam Newton?
After the game, Panthers coach Matt Rhule offered a somewhat bizarre explanation for Newton’s elimination when the team was 30-10 down in the fourth quarter. He said he wanted to defend Newton (fair reasoning), but he added that Newton wasn’t too familiar with the two-minute offense.
Matt Rhule said he brought in PJ Walker, in the 4th round because he knew the offense lasted two minutes.
He is not expected to make any changes in midfield. Cam Newton will begin Week 14.
– Jonathan M Alexander (@jonmalexander) November 28, 2021
Rhule also said that Newton will be the team’s starter for Week 14 after the group bids farewell to Week 13.
While Rhule offers explanations for Newton’s fall, there’s another major reason he’s in his place where he started: Newton had a bad, horrible, bad, very bad day. bad on Sunday.
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In total, Newton was 5 of 21 92-yard passes with two nasty interceptions. Newton ended the day with a pass rating of 5.8.
DJ Moore took 64 of those 92 yards for one of Newton’s few finishes, a deep midway throw.
The replacement Newton, the journeyman (and former XFL best player), wasn’t much better: Walker was fired and then unleashed a interception shortly after entering the game. Walker ended October 5 with an 87-yard pass and interception.
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The Panthers were once on something of a QB carousel in the Rhule era. They switched to Teddy Bridgewater following the release of Newton in March 2020, and then switched to Sam Darnold after the 2021 deal. Newton returned to the Panthers after Darnold injured his shoulder in early November.
Newton was introduced by the Patriots during training camp in 2021 when New England passed the keys to rookie Mac Jones.
