“I don’t know anymore about [**Cam Newton**] than you do until tomorrow. So can we talk about Arizona?” was the last thing that Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera requested before walking out on the press after only two and a half minutes on Thursday.
Rivera answered five out of seven questions regard Newton, “Nope. Cam was in meetings today,” the two-time NFL Coach of the Year said. “He was inside for treatment. Kyle’s preparing as though he’s going to start. We’ll have more clarity tomorrow as we continue to go forward. Tomorrow we should have a good feel for where he is, and we’ll go from there.”
After reiterating that he will have more clarity tomorrow on whether Newton would suit up or his back-up Kyle Allen, he went on to ask if they could talk about Arizona, to which a reporter asked what the chances were of Newton playing this week. And that’s when Rivera walked out.
Newton has been less than stellar in the first two games of the season, holding a QB rating of 26.4, top ten worst in league so far. A foot injury and a weak defensive line could have something to do with it.
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Newton and his team are not making excuses for the QB’s worst start in the league. He also has shoulder surgery in the off season. “You’re not going to hear no type of reasons why tonight didn’t go as planned. I have to be better, no matter what physical condition I’m in, no matter what foot, shoulder, I didn’t get the job done tonight. And it’s frustrating, I wish I could say something other than that, but that’s the facts,” Newton said.
Allen, the Panther’s number two, was seen taking the snaps at center during practices this week, yet Rivera is non-committal about the starter for this Sunday. If Allen were to go, he would be playing against the quarterback he once beat for a starting job in college.
Allen and Kyler Murray both played at Texas A&M and fought for the same position in 2015. Allen won. Now Murray is the number one pick in the draft who is off to a ‘Cam Newton-like’ start, in which Newton passed for 400 yards in each of his first two games. Murray has passed for 300 in both.
We’ll see if Rivera holds another press conference on Friday about the status on Newton.
You can watch the Panthers take on the Cardinals at 4:05 p.m. EST this Sunday.
