New England Patriots: 5 Quarterbacks to replace Tom Brady if he leaves
3. Cam Newton
If the New England Patriots look to the trade market to fill a potential need at quarterback if veteran Tom Brady leaves the franchise this offseason to take his talents elsewhere, an appealing option that might be available is Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton. Newton is a former NFL MVP that most notably led the Panthers to the Super Bowl a few seasons ago, making an appearance in Super Bowl 50.
The 30-year-old quarterback, who was picked first overall out of Auburn by the Panthers in the 2011 NFL Draft, is certainly an interesting option for the Patriots if the Panthers decide to move on from their veteran quarterback in 2020.
Given the recent shift in coaching personnel in Carolina, the Panthers could look to clean the slate and try and see what they could get for Newton on the trade market, and New England could explore the idea of making a deal work to fill its potential need under center.
Newton is a dangerous quarterback both in the passing game and with his legs in the running game, which is a valuable asset for a quarterback to have for teams in the modern layout of teams in the NFL.
In 2019, Newton only appeared in two games for Carolina while dealing with a season-ending foot injury that resulted in him undergoing surgery. In those two games, however, Newton tallied 572 yards passing with one interception, completing 56.2 percent of his passes.
Another thing that is intriguing about New England going after Newton is that Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has said in the past that he views Newton as one of the top quarterbacks in the league.
In 2017, Belichick told the media prior to the Patriots facing the Panthers that Newton is near the top of the list of quarterbacks who are a complete package and are able to throw, run and are also hard to tackle and contain on offense.
That alone could be enough for New England and company to explore the idea of adding Newton to the offense in 2020 if Brady decides he doesn’t want to return for the remainder of his historic career.